Olympic Newsdesk -- Asian Games Leaders Defend Cricket, American Wins New York City Marathon

Asian Olympic Leaders Defend Choice of Cricket

The Olympic Council of Asia has hit back at suggestions that cricket should not have been included on the program for the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, in November 2010.

While extremely popular in countries such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the sport does not enjoy much of a following in East Asia but is one of five new sports at the 2010 Asiad.

OCA director general Husain Al-Musallam defended the decision to add cricket to an event taking place before a Chinese audience.

Speaking at a press conference in Hanoi on Sunday to promote the Games, he said, “Cricket is a popular sport in Asia, an old sport in the Indian sub-continent. I don’t know how many million people play cricket in India but I know it is more than play football in Europe.”

Husain insists the Asian Games could popularize cricket in East Asia and in West Asia. “We thank Guangzhou for accepting this sport and for understanding the culture of cricket and the Asian Games,” he said.

“Badminton has been promoted all over the world through the Asian Games, so why not cricket? Who knows, in 25 years it might be in the Olympic Games.”

Guangzhou organizers told reporters they are making special efforts to promote cricket and the other new sports. Basketball, table tennis and badminton are expected to be the most popular sports at the Games.

Xu Ruisheng, vice mayor of Guangzhou and executive deputy secretary general of the Guangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee (GAGOC), says organizers have made “great strides” in their preparations. He confirmed that most of the major construction work on competition venues is completed. “The venues will be delivered for use from March to June,” he added.

Despite the financial crisis, GAGOC has secured 32 sponsors for the Games, which will involve 20,000 athletes and officials from the 45 NOCs. The Games program of 42 sports will be staged at 70 venues.

OCA Praise for Tokyo 2016 Bid

In a busy weekend for the OCA, president Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah chaired the 55th OCA Executive Board meeting in Hanoi on Saturday. It followed the opening of the third Asian Indoor Games at My Dinh National Stadium in the Vietnamese capital Friday night.

In his opening remarks, Ahmad emphasized the increasingly influential role Asia is playing in the Olympic Movement, including at the 13th Olympic Congress in Copenhagen last month.

“From the Sport Congress we held in Kuwait in March, Asia was a main participant in many fields and contributed to the strategy of the sports movement for the next decade. So I would like to thank our officials for their success within the IOC, and for the successful staging of the 1st OCA Sport Congress.”

Sheikh Ahmad also praised Japanese Olympic Committee president Tsunekazu Takeda for the way Tokyo conducted its bid for the 2016 Olympics. The Japanese capital was eliminated in the second round of voting on Oct. 2, with IOC members choosing Rio de Janeiro to stage the Games after London.

“Tokyo really was a good representative of Asia. You have worked hard, given your best effort and tried to bring the Olympics to Tokyo and to Asia – and trying is a success. I hope we continue to work for the future to make sure Asia always has a presence in the Olympics.

“President Takeda, the OCA thanks you for the effort in your bidding and in your sportsmanship.”

The Asian Indoor Games close on Nov. 8.

Ice Hockey Star Becomes Sochi Ambassador

Sergey Fedorov, a three-time hockey world champion and three-time Stanley Cup winner, is the latest star name to join Sochi 2014 as an ambassador for Russia’s first Winter Games.

In the build-up to the Games, he will play a key role in promoting sport and healthy lifestyles in Russia and spreading the Olympic and Paralympic values around the world.

“Since Sochi was awarded the right to host the 2014 Games, all Russian athletes are united by a single dream: to be crowned Olympic Champion in our home country,” Fedorov said. "As I have become an ambassador, my Olympic Games begins today – being a Sochi 2014 ambassador is as exciting as when I used to enter the ice rink for competition.”

Other Sochi 2014 ambassadors include the 2008 ice hockey world champion Alexander Ovechkin and the gold medal-winning Russian ice hockey team.

Olympian, Paralympian win New York Marathon

The 40th running of the ING New York City Marathon witnessed its first American champion since 1982.

Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi won with a personal-best time of 2 hours, 9 minutes and 15 seconds. The victory also gives him the 34-year-old a win in the USA Men’s Marathon Championships that was held concurrently with the New York Marathon.

Keflezighi won a total of $200,000 including $130,000 for the ING New York City Marathon title, $40,000 for the USA Men’s Marathon title and $30,000 for finishing under 2:10:00.

Keflezighi, a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Eritrea, won a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

Olympian Derartu Tulu of Ethiopia won the women's title with a time of 2:28:52 while last year's champion Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain finished fourth. Tula won gold medals in the 10,000 meters at the 1992 and 2000 Olympics.

Two-time defending Paralympic gold medalist Kurt Fearnley of Australia won his fourth straight by edging out South African Krige Schabort in a photo finish. Both wheelchair racers finished in 1:35:58.

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Written by Mark Bissonand Sam Steinberg.