Oscar Pistorius plans on training again to race competitively. (Gallo Images)

Oscar Pistorius intends on training again, perhaps for the world championships in Moscow in August, despite being charged with the premeditated murder of his girlfriend on Valentines Day.

Pistorius, the double-amputee “Blade Runner” who competed in the London Olympics last summer, was freed on bail in February and wants to return to the track to start running competitively again, according to a report Wednesday afternoon from the Associated Press.

Pistorius is set to return to court in June when prosecutors will look to serve his indictments but the trial may not begin until the end of the year, or possibly not until 2014. According to the AP report, Pistorius is “keen” on getting back to the track:

There was still no decision on an exact time-frame for the multiple Paralympic champion’s return to regular running, but Pistorius told his agent Peet van Zyl and longtime coach Ampie Louw at a Tuesday meeting that he was ”definitely keen to get back on track to resume training,” the agent said.

Pistorius last trained on a track more than two months ago, before the murder of his girlfriend. He hasn’t competed in a race since his victory in the 400-meters final at the London Paralympics in September.

Oscar Pistorius reported to the authorities on Monday morning. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 4. (Alexander Joe/Getty Images)

Oscar Pistorius reported to the authorities on Monday morning, following his release on bail on Friday. The double amputee Olympic runner is currently staying with his uncle in Pretoria.

Pistorius was ordered to hand over his passports and any guns he owns. He is not allowed to return to his home in a gated community in Pretoria, as it is now a crime scene. He cannot leave Pretoria without his probation officer’s permission, and cannot consume any drugs or alcohol.

The runner’s longtime coach Ampie Louw said he wanted to get Pistorius back into training, if he were granted bail. However, Pistorius’ spokeswoman Lunice Johnston said she didn’t know of any immediate plans to return Pistorius to the track.

Pistorius’ next appearance is not until June 4. Accused of murder in the death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, Pistorius faces life imprisonment if convicted.

Oscar Pistorius has been dropped by a number of sponsors. (Stephane de Sakutin/Getty Images)

The downward spiral for Oscar Pistorius continues.

Approximately six months after becoming the first amputee to compete in a track event at the Olympics, Pistorius is now facing a murder charge for allegedly fatally shooting his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day.

In the wake of the charges, The Guardian is reporting that Pistorius has now been dropped by a number of sponsors including Oakley, and Nike said the brand has “no further plans” to feature Pistorius in any of its campaigns. Nike had previously used Pistorius in a number of ad campaigns, including one in which he was featured with the catchline, “I am the bullet in the chamber.” The endorsements were believed to have brought in $2 million for the former Olympic star.

According to the report, his agent, Peet van Zyl, told the media on Sunday that sponsors remain committed to Pistorius despite the charges.

Oscar Pistorius appears in court on charges of premeditated murder. He denied the claims, saying he had no intention of killing his girlfriend. (Stephane De Sakutin/AFP/Getty Images)

Oscar Pistorius denied charges that he intended to kill his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in an affidavit read aloud in a South African courtroom on Tuesday, reports the New York Times. The statement contradicts the accusation by the prosecution that the double-amputee Olympian had committed premeditated murder last Thursday. It was the first time either side had publicly revealed details of their differing accounts of Steenkamp’s death.

“I fail to understand how I could be charged with murder, let alone premeditated,” Pistorius said in an affidavit read to the packed courtroom by his defense lawyer, Barry Roux, “I had no intention to kill my girlfriend.”

“We were deeply in love and I could not be happier,” said Mr. Pistorius’s affidavit, read at a bail hearing. “I know she felt the same way.”

As the statement was read, Pistorius wept so much that a recess was called until he regained his composure. The case was adjourned until Wednesday without a bail ruling.

If convicted of the premeditated murder charge, Pistorius would face a mandatory life sentence; he would be eligible for parole in 25 years at the latest.

Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas has been named AP’s female athlete of the year. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas has been named AP’s 2012 female athlete of the year, edging out fellow Olympian Missy Franklin for the title. Douglas received 48 of 157 votes cast by U.S. editors and news directors. Franklin took second with 41 votes, and Serena Williams received 24 votes.

At just 16 years old, Gabby Douglas became the first African-American to win the Olympic all-around gold in gymnastics. Now she adds another honor to the list, becoming the fourth gymnast to win AP’s athlete of the year.

Since winning the all-around title at the Olympics, Douglas has attracted deals with Kellogg, Nike and AT&T. Her book “Grace, Gold and Glory” is fourth on the New York Times’ young adult list.

Although her busy schedule hasn’t allowed time to train yet, Douglas insists she will compete in the 2016  Olympics in Rio de Janeiro

Russian discus thrower, Darya Pishchalnikova, may lose the silver medal she won in London after testing positive for a banned substance. (Jonathan Nackstrand/Getty Images)

Russian Olympian, Darya Pishchalnikova may lose the silver medal she won in the discus at the 2012 Games in London after testing positive in a doping test, reports the Associated Press:

Russia’s All Sports agency says Pishchalnikova tested positive for the banned substance Oxandrolone in a reanalysis of a sample taken in an out-of-competition control last May. The original test was negative, but her sample was checked again months later based on a more advanced testing method introduced by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Pishchalnikova, 27, who was competing in her first Olympics in London, also faces a lifetime ban. If she is stripped of her medal, the silver would go to China’s Li Yanfeng and bronze to Yareli Barriosnikova of Cuba.

Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin committed to swim for Cal, thus keeping her amateur status. (Donna Ward/Getty Images)

Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin has committed to swim for the University of California-Berkeley, reports USA Today.

“I instantly felt at home there,” Franklin said on Saturday. “The team dynamic is incredible. The friends I swim with in college will be the bridesmaids at my wedding. You can’t put a price on friendship. You can’t put a price on being part of a team.”

Franklin wanted to keep her amateur status so she could be eligible to swim in college.

At Cal, she will swim for Teri McKeever, who was also the head coach of the U.S. Olympic women’s team. Franklin won four gold medals and a bronze at the 2012 London Olympics and narrowed her list to four colleges Georgia, Texas, Southern Cal, and Cal Berkeley.

Swimmers can sign a letter of intent on Nov. 14.

Olympic athletes like Sanya Richards-Ross are meeting to form a union. (Eric Feferberg/Getty Images)

Some of the biggest names in track and field are meeting to form a union because they are fighting to eliminate a rule against promoting, seeking prize money and want collective bargaining, reports ESPN.com. 

Some of the biggest names in the sport, including Americans Sanya Richards-Ross and Bernard Lagat and Jamaican stars Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake, are part of a movement that gained momentum during the London Games.

The athlete’s issue is Rule 40, an International Olympic Committee bylaw, which bans Olympic athletes from advertising for non-Olympic sponsors in the time period just before and during the Games.

“The whole (#WeDemandChange) Twitter rants has been an internal discussion we’ve had for years,” Richards-Ross told ESPN.com. “A lot of athletes in our sport are severely underpaid, hold two or three jobs just to train and stay in the sport, and what pushed me over the edge to get on board and mobilize was just seeing how much money was generated from the Olympic Games.”

Another issue is the lack of transparency when athletes are not involved in talks or decision making among the Olympic committee and sponsors.

“We’re really just trying to move the sport forward in a professional way,” Khadevis Robinson, a U.S. middle-distance runner and president of the Track and Field Athletes Association said. “At the end of the day, that’s all we’re trying to do and our hopes are that the USOC and IOC don’t see it as something negative because we don’t. But it’s time, it really is.”

Olympic gold medalist, Tianna Madison, is being sued by her parents for libel, slander and defamation. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)

Tianna Madison’s parents, Jo Ann and Robert Madison, are suing their daughter for libel, slander and defamation the Chronicle-Telegram reports. The lawsuit was filed Thursday morning in the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court in Ohio.

The complaint naming Tianna Madison and her husband, John Bartoletta, as defendants states that since March of this year the couple has repeatedly published false and defamatory statements about the Madisons to various third parties, including media outlets.

The lawsuit details allegations that Tianna Madison has falsely said that her parents mismanaged her finances and that they knowingly allowed a boy who had molested the athlete in the past to enter their home in her presence.

Madison’s parents had flown to London to watch their daughter win gold as part of the U.S. women’s 4x100m relay team. Madison ran the opening leg, and was followed by Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight and Carmelita Jeter. The team went on to set a world record with a time of 40.82 seconds.

Prince Harry raced Ryan Lochte at a Vegas pool party, according to reports. (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Swimmer Ryan Lochte and Prince Harry brought the Olympic spirit with them to a Las Vegas pool party at 3 a.m. Monday, reports the New York Daily News. 

The pair raced at XS nightclub’s Encore Pool Party, according to reports. But there is conflicting information about who won the race.

The Mirror reports that Harry won with some help from a friend who held Lochte’s legs. The Daily Beast says Lochte won even though the prince had a three-second head start. The website also reports the party was in honor of Lochte’s 28th birthday, which was Aug. 3, during the Olympics.

Harry had previously raced Usain Bolt in a 100-meter sprint.

David Stern’s age limit for the 2016 Olympics has little chance of being implemented, a FIBA official said. (Garrett Ellwood/Getty Images)

FIBA Secretary General Patrick Baumann said Friday that the David Stern-proposed age limit for Olympic basketball would “widen the divide” between the United States and the rest of the world, suggesting the rule had little chance of being implemented.

Baumann spoke to FIBA’s official website in a question-and-answer session, and he said it was “too early” to consider making such potentially drastic changes to the quality of basketball at the Olympics.

From a global perspective, the progress of the talent in all other countries doesn’t go at the same speed or the same pace as the USA. They don’t all have a school system like the USA. So the ability for the rest of the world to produce a lot of talent is not the same as the USA. As a result of that, lowering the age to U23 at the Olympics could actually widen the divide between the USA and the rest of the world.

There is also a more general issue of what the Olympic Games represent. The NBA, the IOC and FIBA, we have all earned a lot – not just in financial terms – from professional athletes being at the Olympics since 1992. This is the case with regards to the way basketball has grown, from where we were then to where we are now.

So it would be premature to make changes in the quality of basketball at the Olympics, especially before having maximised the potential of the World Cup. So it’s too early to make any changes in the Olympic programme.

SI.com’s Ian Thomsen reported on Aug. 9 that the age limit was “unlikely,” at least for 2016, and Baumann’s sentiments seem to confirm that feeling within FIBA. It means that a USA team in 2016 could feature LeBron James, who said Sunday that he would like to play for the fourth time in the 2016 Olympics. And it could also star Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony, not to mention players like Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose, who missed this round due to injury.

We’re not sure what’s more newsworthy about this Access Hollywood interview with U.S. swimming star Ryan Lochte on the set of The CW’s 90210: the first glimpse of Lochte’s scenes from his Oct. 29 appearance on the show or his admission that he would consider being The Bachelor.

Lochte filmed several lines of dialogue for his 90210 cameo, and it would be irresponsible not to note that he delivered all of them shirtless. The most significant from a sports perspective: Pointing to a rope ladder, Lochte emotes, “I would love to race Phelps on that.”

Moving on, Lochte said that he has not yet heard from Bachelor producers. But asked if he would consider an offer to appear on the show, he replied, “I’d think about it and I definitely would [consider it]. Before, I was training so much that I didn’t have time for a girlfriend, ’cause I wanted to give that perfect someone my heart. Now that the Olympics are over, I definitely want to settle down.”

Without further ado, full video from Access Hollywood below:

Vanessa Bryant joined Kobe Bryant at the London Olympics. (Ronald Martinez/Getty images)

Kobe Bryant’s gold medal play at the London Olympics and the arrival of new teammate Dwight Howard have put reports of his divorce on the backburner. Wife, Vanessa, revealed that she won’t settle for a loser for a husband in an interview for the current issue of New York Magazine, picked up by Pro Basketball Talk, Nicki Jhabvala and The Basketball Jones.

“I certainly would not want to be married to somebody that can’t win championships. If you’re sacrificing time away from my family and myself for the benefit of winning championships, then winning a championship should happen every single year.”
That certainly comes off as… elitist. Which is a kind word for her reputation among some at Staples Center. That said, it kind of sounds like a less polished version of what Kobe Bryant would say.

Jeff Demps is coming back to football after a foray into professional track. (Al Messerschmidt, Getty Images)

Jeff Demps went to London and won silver. Now he’ll hope to win a Super Bowl trophy in the NFL.

NFL.com reports that Jeff Demps, who played running back for the Florida Gators football team in addition to running track in Gainesville, has filed paperwork with the NFL and intends to begin playing this season.

Demps was originally supposed to be eligible for this year’s NFL Draft, but he instead decided to pursue a career in professional track. After running in a preliminary heat for the USA’s 4×100 relay team in London (which still earned him a medal), Demps has decided to reverse course.

Due largely to his speed, Demps will be a coveted free agent. He won a national Championship with the Gators in 2009 and averaged between five and seven yards per carry in each of his four seasons at Florida.

Demps also holds numerous track championships in both indoor and outdoor events, largely in sprints or relays. He is the only Florida Gator athlete to win national championships in two sports.

Doc Rivers endorsed Doug Collins as the next coach of the men’s Olympic basketball team. (Steve Babineau/Getty Images)

Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doug Collins received the endorsement of Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers to lead U.S. basketball to gold in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janiero, according to Comcast Sportsnet.

Mike Krzyzewski confirmed after winning gold on Sunday that London would be his last coaching stint.

Rivers said Collins would be best suited for the job in part because Collins was on the 1972 team that lost gold to the Soviet Union at the Olympics in Munich.

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich and Rivers are front runners to replace Krzyzewski. Rivers said that no one should turn down the opportunity to coach at the Olympic level, and that if he is given the opportunity, he will make sure Collins is on the team as an assistant coach.

Nadzeya Ostapchuk was stripped of her gold medal for doping. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images).

Bealrusian shot putter Nadzeya Ostapchuk was stripped of her Olympic gold medal on Monday after two drug tests confirmed she had traces of a banned, anabolic agent, according to a report Monday morning from Tom Bryant of The Guardian. New Zealand’s Valerie Adams, who took home silver, will be awarded the gold.

Adams said: “I am speechless with this news. It is taking me some time to take this in. It is also encouraging for those athletes like myself, who are proud to compete cleanly, that the system works and doping cheats are caught.”

Ostapchuk was tested once on August 5 and again the day after her gold winning performance of throwing the shot put 21.36 meters. The International Olympic Committee confirmed that there was in fact metenolone, a banned substance, in her system at the time of her competition.

Ostapchuk became only the second athlete to be banned from the London Olympics; judo fighter Nick Delpopolo of the U.S. was disqualified from his 73 kilogram weight class after traces of marijuana were found in his blood.

News of Ostapchuk’s ban ironically comes shortly after IOC president Jacques Rogge said the fight against doping at the Olympics has been a success.

After Team USA’s gold-medal winning performance in the 2012 London Olympics, LeBron James told USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt that he wasn’t sure about playing in 2016.

LeBron James: “It’s been a great run honestly. I don’t know if I’m going to be part of the 2016 team.”

— Jeff Zillgitt (@JeffZillgitt) August 12, 2012

The point might be moot if David Stern’s concept of only allowing players 23 years and under compete in 2016 becomes practice. James will be 31 in 2016. But coming off perhaps his finest all-around year of basketball — complete with an NBA championship, NBA Finals MVP award and an Olympic gold medal — there’s little reason to believe James wouldn’t be among the top veteran considerations for the team.

James is only a maybe at this point, but both Kobe Bryant and head coach Mike Krzyzewski have said they will not return in 2016.

If James did decide to play in 2016, he would be in a position to surpass both Bryant and Michael Jordan and win his third gold medal as a member of Team USA.

Still don’t believe how important track and field is in Jamaica? Maybe the following video will convince you. Watch Jamaicans in the Kingston neighborhood of Half Way Tree go nuts after witnessing their countrymen’s 1-2-3 sweep in the 200 meters.

Usain Bolt completed his 100-200 double-double by taking gold in 19.32 seconds, with Yohan Blake winning silver in 19.44 and Warren Weir bronze in 19.82.

In his press conference following his win in the 200 meters, Usain Bolt made no attempt to hide his disdain for Carl Lewis, the gold standard among Olympic track athletes with nine gold medals.

Jenna Fryer of The Associated Press has Bolt’s full comments:

“I’m going to say something controversial right now: Carl Lewis, I have no respect for him. The things he says about the track athletes is really downgrading for another athlete to say something like that. I think he’s just looking for attention, really, because nobody really talks much about him. So he’s looking for attention. That was really sad for me when I heard the other day what he was saying. It was upsetting. I’ve lost all respect for him. All respect.

Asked why he had such strong feelings toward Lewis, Bolt brought up Lewis’ suspicions about doping:

“It was all about drugs,” said Bolt. “Talking about drugs. For me, an athlete to be out of the sport to be saying that. That was really upsetting for me. Really upsetting. To jump up and say something like that. As far as I’m concerned he’s looking for attention. That’s all.”

As far back as 2008, in an interview with London’s Daily Telegraph, Lewis said, among other things:

“When people ask me about Bolt,” said Lewis, “I say he could be the greatest athlete of all time. But for someone to run 10.03 one year and 9.69 the next, if you don’t question that in a sport that has the reputation it has right now, you’re a fool. Period.”

After Bolt’s win in the 100 meters on Sunday, Lewis appeared to knock Bolt again, suggesting on international TV that Bolt had some work to do before he could be considered a true legend.

Carmelo Anthony is nursing a sore hamstring. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Carmelo Anthony is nursing a sore hamstring and although he maintains he’s fine, the New York Knicks have sent a trainer to London to watch over him, according to a tweet Thursday from Frank Isola of The New York Daily News.

It’s not certain whether he injured his hamstring on a specific play recently or if it’s been something that has been nagging him for an extended period of time. He is averaging 17.3 points per game on 53-percent shooting at the Olympics, so it doesn’t appear to have a real effect on his game.

His hamstring injury will be monitored by team trainers as the U.S. readies itself for a semifinal match against Argentina on Friday. Anthony took a shot to the groin on Monday from Facundo Campazzo of Argentina, prompting Anthony to say the dirty play was “uncalled for.”

The winner of U.S.-Argentina will play for the gold in a game against the winner of Russia and Spain in the other semifinal.

Carmelo is nursing a sore hamstring but says he's fine. Knicks sent one of their own trainers to London to look after him—
Frank Isola (@FisolaNYDN) August 09, 2012

Kobe Bryant confirmed that the London Olympics will be his last. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images)

Fans of Kobe Bryant hoping to see him in Rio de Janiero for the 2016 Olympics received disappointing news this week. The 34-year-old Los Angeles Lakers star confirmed that London will be the end of the road for his Olympic play, according to a tweet from Marc Stein of ESPN.com.

It would’ve been Bryant’s third Olympic Games; he first joined the team that won Gold in Beijing in 2008. He turned down an invitation to play at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney because he was getting married and, ironically, could not compete in the 2004 Olympics in Athens because of a legal case involving a woman in Colorado who claimed he sexually assaulted her.

Although he won’t be competing internationally at the Olympic level, Bryant also made headlines this week after telling Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports that he won’t rule out playing in Europe once he retires from the NBA.

According to Wojnarowski, Bryant will fulfill the remaining two years on his Lakers contract — he is set to become the highest paid player in the NBA next season at $27 million for the year — and then consider his options. Bryant spent part of his childhood in Italy and said of the possibility of playing there, “It would be natural for me to go do it. It wouldn’t be a stretch at all. I grew up here.”

Not that there was a ton of doubt, but Kobe got asked last night if this is indeed his last Olympics at 34. Kobe's response: "This is it"—
Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) August 07, 2012

Ryan Lochte could be appearing in a reality television show soon. (Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

U.S. Olympic gold medal swimmer Ryan Lochte has multiple offers to star in a reality show as he gets ready to leave the Games in London and move to Los Angeles, according to a report on Wednesday from the HollywoodReporter.com citing his agent, Erika Wright:

“I cannot tell you the exact shows, but two different reality show concepts have been offered and one additional is being discussed,” Wright writes in an e-mail, adding that American talk shows are angling to book Lochte as a guest when he returns to the states.

Wright also revealed that he has other television offers as well as an opportunity to create his own fashion line. His agent also confirmed that he has been asked by actor Will Ferrell to star in a skit for Ferrell’s comedy site FunnyOrDie.com.

Lochte also reportedly said he would consider appearing as a contestant on the television show Dancing with the Stars, going so far as to suggest that Michael Phelps should also join the competition.

Lochte won gold at the London Olympics for the 400 meter individual medley and the 4×200 meter freestyle relay.

Former “Laguna Beach” star Kristin Cavallari, the fiancee of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, gave birth to the couple’s first child Wednesday, according to a tweet from Cavallari’s account.

We are thrilled to welcome Camden Jack Cutler into the world. He was born this morning weighing 7lbs 9oz. Everyone is doing great!

—
Kristin Cavallari (@KristinCav) August 08, 2012

Cutler and Cavallari began dating in 2010 and were engaged in April 2011. The pair broke up that July but eventually got back together and, last November, were engaged again. In January, Cavallari revealed she was pregnant.

Cutler’s teammate, wide receiver Earl Bennett, revealed the couple was expecting a boy.

The Bears are in training camp right now, so it has likely been a stressful and busy time for Cutler.

Team USA point guard Chris Paul is in a similar situation. His wife is due August 16 with the couple’s second child, and he is hoping she doesn’t give birth until he returns from the Olympics.

“She’s starting to have more and more contractions, but I told her she’d better hold on,” Paul told SI’s Lee Jenkins. “I told her she’s not going into labor while I’m gone — I would be so upset.”

Hurdler Lolo Jones is upset with the media criticism she received before even competing. (Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Lolo Jones narrowly missed a medal with her fourth-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles on Tuesday, and Jones emotionally spoke out against her critics in an interview with the TODAY Show on Wednesday.

A recent New York Times’ story compared her to tennis player Anna Kournikova. The story’s premise was that the media attention on Jones stemmed from her looks, not her accomplishments on the track.

Jones, who was leading when she hit the second-to-last hurdle at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, struck back against the article.

“I think it was crazy, just because it was two days before I competed,” Jones said. “And then, the fact that (it’s) from a U.S. media (outlet). They should be supporting our U.S. Olympic athletes, and instead, they just ripped me to shreds.

“I just thought that that was crazy because I work six days a week, every day for four years, for a 12-second race. The fact that they just tore me apart, it was just heartbreaking.

“They didn’t even do the research,” she continued.” Called me the Anna Kournikova of track. I have the American record. I am the American record holder indoors, have two world indoor titles. Just because I don’t boast about these things, I don’t think I should be ripped apart by media.

“I laid it out there, I fought hard for my country. It’s just a shame that I have to deal with so much backlash when I’m already so brokenhearted as it is.”

Jones was uncertain to make the U.S. Olympic team or, later, the Olympic final. She was not expected to contend for the gold medal.

Gymnast Gabby Douglas could make millions of dollars in endorsements. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

With 22 medals, Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian in history, but gymnast Gabby Douglas has thoroughly beaten the swimmer in hits on the NBC Olympics website during the London Games.

Douglas, the individual all-around gold medalist who also helped lead the U.S. to the team gold, has recorded 18.27 million hits, NBC announced. Phelps is second best with 7.04 million hits.

Douglas’ teammate McKayla Maroney, the silver medalist in the vault, is third with 6.04 million hits.

The 16-year-old Douglas has been one of the breakout stars of the Olympics. She will likely earn millions of dollars in endorsements following her wins at the Olympics. She already has a deal in place to appear on special-edition versions of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes.

Alex Ovechkin returned from the 2010 Olympics without a medal, but he’s obviously thrilled that his girlfriend, Maria Kirilenko, won a bronze medal in women’s doubles tennis at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Ovechkin and Kobe Bryant watched Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova of Russia win the bronze medal by defeating top seeds Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond of the United States, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. Kirilenko and Petrova lost to eventual gold medal winners Venus and Serena Williams in the semifinals.

Ovechkin shared his excitement for Kirilenko making the medal stand via Twitter:

Maria!!!! Nadia!!! Medals!! and Me!! Hahahaah! http://t.co/JZomk944—
Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8) August 05, 2012

Ryan Lochte has admitted to urinating in the Olympic warm-up pool. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)

File this away in the “Too much information” file. AP sports writer Rob Harris reports that American swimmer Ryan Lochte, who won five medals at the London Olympics, has been using the Olympic pools for more than just swimming.

Don’t worry – you weren’t watching him urinate on television. But as he told Ryan Seacrest …

“I sure did in warm-up.”

“I think there’s just something about getting into chlorine water that you just automatically go.”

Let the speculation begin as to what kind of endorsement deals this could spring.

Doc Rivers said that not even the pursuit of Olympic gold can compare to the road to winning an NBA championship. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Doc Rivers won’t shy away from his feelings towards winning Olympic gold. The opportunity is something coaches might use as a recruiting tactic, but at least for the men’s U.S. basketball team, it’s the NBA championship that should matter most.

Rivers told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports that winning the gold medal and trying to win it gets confused as one in the same, and that while representing your country is the highest honor, there’s nothing quite like the pursuit of an NBA ring:

“I’m as patriotic as anybody, but I would rather win the NBA championship than a gold medal,” Rivers said. “But winning a gold medal – and trying to win a gold medal – is a completely different feeling, and there’s no feeling like it.

He remembers being 0-13 in his pursuit of a ring as a player, and when he finally won it all as head coach of the Boston Celtics in 2008, not even the idea of winning Olympic gold as a player was enough to compare to that road towards becoming an NBA champion, even as a coach:

[W]hen you’re in the NBA it’s a yearly process. Think about me: I was 0-13 in my playing career, got close a couple times. It becomes a desperate pursuit to win it. After a few more years as a coach, after nearly 20 years in the league, I finally win. There’s no pursuit like that.

Kobe Bryant probably wouldn’t trade an NBA ring for any of his golds, Rivers said, just as men’s U.S. Olympic basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski wouldn’t trade his four NCAA Championship rings that he won as coach of the Duke Blue Devils. It’s a matter of weeks in the Olympics versus months if not years for NBA coaches, he said:

“When you try to win the Olympics, you make a team and it’s a much shorter pursuit over several weeks. It’s still great, but I would guarantee you that Coach K would take the NCAA championships first. The players who say ‘I’d take the gold medal’ have never won an NBA championship.”

Kobe Bryant is already taking jabs at Carmelo Anthony over the Lakers’ Christmas game with the Knicks. (Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Kobe Bryant’s pursuit for Gold this summer with Olympic teammates Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler of the New York Knicks doesn’t make him feel precluded from talking a little trash about the match-up his Los Angeles Lakers have scheduled with the Knicks on Christmas Day.

According to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, Bryant thinks this Christmas could be the end of a drought for the Lakers:

“We actually might win on Christmas Day for the first time ever,” Bryant says.

Bryant isn’t entirely correct. The last time the Lakers won on Christmas was in 2008 in a 92-83 victory over the rival Boston Celtics. The Lakers ended the Celtics’ 19-game winning streak and went on to defeat Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of the 2009 NBA Finals. Since 2008, the Lakers have lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2009 when LeBron James was on the team, the following year in 2010 against James and his Miami Heat and then again in a loss in 2011 on Christmas Day against Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls.

The Lakers game this year against the Knicks will be a match-up of two new backcourts. New York saw the return of Raymond Felton this offseason and signed veteran Jason Kidd while the Lakers signed two-time MVP Steve Nash in July.

Andre Iguodala is reportedly off the trading block. (David Ramos/Getty Images)

Despite being the subject of trade rumors over the past year, Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala will remain with the team for the start of next season, according to a report from John Finger of CSNPhilly.com:

According to a source, a trade involving Iguodala “won’t happen” during the off-season. As a result of that, the Sixers’ off-season tinkering to their roster is complete and aside from a few free agents who get invitations to training camp, the team is set.

The most recent rumor involving him came in June when it was reported by CBSSports.com that the Toronto Raptors were interested in Iguodala for the team’s No. 8 Draft pick; the Raptors ended up holding on to the pick and selecting Terrence Ross out of The University of Washington.

If Iguodala does in fact remain in Philadelphia, the team will look to build on its success last season as an eight seed that knocked off the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The team has a young core of Jrue Holiday, Spencer Hawes, Evan Turner and Nick Young, who the Sixers signed to a one-year deal worth $6 million this offseason.

Iguodala, who is set to make $14.7 million next season, is currently with the U.S. men’s basketball team in London for the Olympics.

Teenage girls around the world may be jealous of U.S. swimmer Missy Franklin this morning, and not because she won a gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke Monday.

The 17-year-old Franklin, who is quickly becoming one of the stars of the London Olympics, received a message from pop star Justin Bieber on Twitter.

heard @FranklinMissy is a fan of mine. now im a fan of hers too. CONGRATS on winning GOLD! #muchlove

—
Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) July 31, 2012

“@justinbieber: heard @FranklinMissy is a fan of mine. now im a fan of hers too. CONGRATS on winning GOLD! #muchlove” I just died! Thankyou!

—
Missy Franklin (@FranklinMissy) July 31, 2012

Franklin had a busy Monday. She qualified for the final of the 200-meter freestyle and, less than 15 minutes later, hit the pool again in the 100 back. She broke her own American record in taking her first Olympic gold medal.

Franklin plans to swim in seven events at the Olympics, and if she keeps racing the way she did Monday, she could steal the swimming spotlight from male teammates Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps.

Former Beatles star Paul McCartney was paid the equivalent of $1.57 for his performance at the Opening Ceremony. (Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Former Beatles star Paul McCartney was paid £1, the equivalent of $1.57, for his performance at the Opening Ceremony of the London Olympics, reports The Guardian.

McCartney and many of the other celebrities who performed in the ceremony had originally agreed to perform for free, but the £1 fee was needed to make their performance contracts binding.

McCartney should be able to make due without his normal fees. He is the world’s second-wealthiest rock star (behind U2′s Bono) with an estimated net worth of more than $1 billion.

Soccer may be taking a break from play today at the London Olympics, but there is still plenty happening off the field. Players from three separate teams were suspended individually for separate incidents, either by FIFA or their own Olympic federation.

The name most familiar to USA fans will be Lady Andrade, the Colombian defender who delivered a sucker punch to the face of American striker Abby Wambach (shown here in GIF form courtesy SBNation). The referee in the match missed Andrade’s actions so no punishment was doled out at the time, so FIFA announced that they will suspend Andrade for the next two games in which Colombia takes part.

Andrade is suspended for FRAvCOL on 31 July. 2nd match to be served either during ¼ final or outside competition. (Art. 38 par. 2 FDC). 2/2—
FIFA Media (@fifamedia) July 30, 2012

FIFA also announced that Moroccan defender Zakarya Bergdich will be suspended an additional game for a vicious kick to the knee of Honduras’ Mario Martinez. Bergdich received a red card in the game for his actions, and has already served the mandatory one-game suspension that comes with it. However, FIFA decided that Bergdich deserved an extra game on the sidelines.

Bergdich's suspension follows the red card received by the player in the match Honduras v Morocco on 26 July. 2/2—
FIFA Media (@fifamedia) July 30, 2012

FIFA's Disciplinary Committee has suspended Morocco's Zakarya Bergdich for 2 matches, including automatic match served v MOR on 29 July. 1/2—
FIFA Media (@fifamedia) July 30, 2012

Switzerland’s Michel Morganella faced the harshest punishment of the bunch. The AP reports that defender has been expelled from the Olympics by his own country after posting racist messages on Twitter against the South Korean people. Switzerland lost 2-1 to South Korea in yesterday’s action. Morganella’s account has since been deleted.

Kobe Bryant and LeBron James are the two most popular Olympians on Facebook, but it’s James and Michael Phelps who are the most mentioned Olympians on the internet. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

LeBron James has been the must buzzed about Olympic athlete so far during the London Olympics, with more than 78,000 mentions across all major social media sites, according to a report from Sam Laird of Mashable.com.

Citing data from Radian6.com, which monitors social media trends and engagement, James has been the most mentioned Olympian of the past 30 days based on statistics collected from Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, blogs, online news sites and 150 million other sites.

Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt are the second and third most “buzzed” Olympians, respectively. Oscar Pistorius, the first double-amputee Olympian, is the fifth most mentioned Olympian online, right behind Ryan Lochte.

The Olympian with the most friends on Facebook is Kobe Bryant, who, as of Sunday evening, had over 13.5 million fans. LeBron James was second with 11.9 million while Roger Federer was third with 11.2 million.

Empty seats have been a theme so far at the London Olympics. (Graham Stuart/Getty Images)

London’s Olympic organizing committee chairman, Lord Sebastian Coe, admitted to bringing in soldiers, students and teachers of London schools to fill the gaps of empty seats seen throughout various events during the first few days of the Olympics, reported Rob Preece of The Daily Mail, though Coe downplayed the severity of the issue:

“Let’s not run away with ourselves here,’ he said. ‘We’re talking about an issue on the first couple of days.”

Mark Adams, a spokesman for the International Olympic Committee, said it wasn’t a lack of attendance on the part of the general public that’s leaving many seats empty, rather it’s sports organizations from around the world, the media and “a handful of sponsors” who are failing to show.

The report said that troops were brought in to fill empty press seats to the U.S. men’s basketball game vs France on Sunday, and cited a number of other events including men’s volleyball where “pockets” of seats for the media were left unused. The Queen’s granddaughter made her Olympic debut on Sunday for an equestrian event, but reports were that even this premiere wasn’t as big a draw as expected as many seats were seen empty there as well.

According to The Guardian, there were an estimated 500 empty seats in one block alone for the highly anticipated swimming meet on Saturday between Michael Phelps and rival Ryan Lochte.

Those empty seats have many fans feeling frustrated when they’re told tickets for certain events are sold out. Matt Casson, 36, of London, attended a swimming event on Sunday morning as a fan and confirmed that there were a number of empty seats:

“It’s really disappointing. They should do something like they do at Wimbledon where at a certain time they put them on sale to the general public, just re-sell them.

While Coe hints at the issue going away in the next few days, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt called the matter “very disappointing” and said that there will be an investigation to prevent it from being an ongoing issue:

“I think it was accredited seats that belonged to sponsors, but if they’re not going to turn up, we want those tickets to be available for members of the public, because that creates the best atmosphere. We are looking at this very urgently at the moment.”