Lane 1 - The Telegraph posts "Claire Harvey: Why Stephanie Rice can never win.
STEPHANIE Rice has one of the most beautiful bodies I've ever seen. She is strong and lean. She has a flat stomach and smooth, olive skin, the face of a Roman princess, gorgeously thick, dark hair. Even her hands and feet are exquisite. Despite being Australia's best female swimming hope for the London Olympics, and despite already having three Olympic gold medals and a consistently remarkable record of performance at international level, there's a lack of affection _ and a real lack of respect _ for Rice out there. She's not the girl you see on cereal boxes or charity endorsements. She isn't the kind of fresh-faced sweetheart whom magazine editors can rely upon for a big-selling cover shoot." All cuz of this from the Herald Sun "Stephanie Rice tweets Quade Cooper a little reminder. Stephanie Rice posted this photograph of herself on Twitter just days after her split from boyfriend Quade Cooper was announced."
Lane 2 - YNN posts (w/video) "Phelps leads way on day one of Austin Grand Prix. Michael Phelps began his weekend in Austin with a victory in the 100 butterfly and a consolation win in the 100 freestyle at the Austin Grand Prix. Former Longhorn Ricky Berens placed second in the finals of the 100 freestyle, behind Nathan Adrian. Another former Horn, Dave Walters, finished fifth in the same race. Janet Evans continued her comeback to competitive swimming in the 400 freestyle, posting an Olympic Trials qualifying time."
KVUE posts "Olympians in Austin for Swimming Grand Prix. With six months to go until the summer Olympics, all eyes of the swimming world are focused on Austin this weekend. That's because the Swimming Grand Prix is underway at the Joe Jamail Swim Center at the University of Texas. It's part of a series leading up to this summer's Olympic qualifications. On the men's side, 14-time gold medalist Michael Phelps is there. Janet Evans, 1988 gold medalist, is making headlines in the women's division. Now 40 years old and a mother of two, she says all this is familiar."
Lane 3 - Big Pond posts "Improvement for Thorpe on comeback trail. Ian Thorpe admits he has plenty of work to do, but made a positive step in his comeback with fifth in the 200m
freestyle final at the Victorian titles. The best that post-retirement Thorpe can do right now is six seconds slower in the 200m freestyle than when he dominated world swimming." While the Brisbane Times posts "'This is the best I can swim': Thorpe insists he's not faking with slow times. IAN THORPE last night denied he had been foxing in his swims since launching a comeback to competitive swimming and that his underwhelming form had not been due to holding himself back for when it counts at the Olympic trials in March. The former world and Olympic champion also declared that when it came time to perform, his big-time experience could prove to be his ace in the pack as he struggled to catch the new generation of swimmers blocking his path to the London Olympic Games. Thorpe said he was ''doing a very good job'' if he had been hiding his true form." PR Web posts "Sports social
network PlayUp to provide unprecedented access during Ian Thorpe’s comeback. Australian Olympic swimming icon, Ian Thorpe, has joined former Australian cricket captain Steve Waugh and Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma as an official brand ambassador for a new sports social network, which has recently launched worldwide. Speaking from Melbourne where he is completing for the first time in six years Thorpe said he was excited about his role as an ambassador with PlayUp and would become an active user of the app where he can provide his thoughts on his preparation direct to fans. “I am passionate about the role of technology in sport and PlayUp offers the chance for me to connect with fans during my training as well as having the opportunity to follow my favourite sports - such as Premier League ."
Lane 4 - The World Link posts "Masters swimmers win national titles. The Oregon Coast Masters swimming group had another good showing in a national postal event, with local swimmers being part of two relay teams that set national records and nine relay victories overall, as well as two individual national titles. Nina Gee and Karen Matson both were part of Oregon relay teams that set national records."
Lane 5 - New Zealand Herald posts "Swimming: Athletes aim high with right altitude. Mark Regan has clocked up two years in a coaching role with Swimming New Zealand and evidence suggests the nation's top swimmers are working in a better environment under his watch after a tumultuous year for the sport. Regan knows about success, too, having coached athletes and relay teams to six Olympic medals and 21 long and short course world championships medals in his career with Australia and Denmark. The recent altitude training
camp 2130m up in Flagstaff, Arizona is an example of him lobbying to improve his athletes. "
Lane 6 - The Daily Star has "DANIEL CRAIG SETS UP SPEEDO TRAP. BOND hunk Daniel Craig is flaunting his licence to thrill as the chiselled bad boy teases fans with this sexy snapshot. The Casino Royale star, 43, posed for his first official photo for Skyfall, his third outing as the super spy, showing female admirers that it is not just the Bond girls who catch everyone’s GoldenEye."
Lane 7 - Huffington Post has (w/video) "Great White Shark Circles Fishing Boat Off Oahu, Hawaii. Cue the theme from "Jaws" -- a massive shark was spotted by a pair of fishermen off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii. Addison Toki caught on camera his encounter with what he believes was a 15-foot great white shark.According to KITV4 News, Toki and his friend Dominick Gaballo were fishing about five miles off Yokohama Bay on the west side of Oahu on January 12, when they spotted one of the ocean's largest predatory fish."
Lane 8 - The Telegraph posts "Gentlemen like Michael Clark and Ryan Stokes are replacing playboys in 2012 says Ros Reines. WILL 2012 herald the return of the gentleman? Let's face it, this gallant species seems to have been missing in action in the early part of the noughties. But recently, Australian high-profile men have become a tad reticent, with even some of the most eligible - including Seven executive and media heir Ryan Stokes, Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke, South Sydney forward Sam Burgess and top swimmer James Magnussen - remarkably low-key."
sorry about some formatting issues with images and text....grrrr!
