China: Rain and lightning bring delays to Games

Express India ^ | 08/14/08

[TigerLikesRooster]

Rain and lightning bring delays to Games

Agencies

Posted online: Thursday, August 14, 2008 at 1609 hrs IST

Beijing, August 14:

Heavy rain and lightning badly disrupted Olympic Games action on Thursday with rowing and canoe events put back to Friday and the tennis quarter-finals seriously delayed.

The women's semi-finals in the kayak and the double canoe final were put back to Friday after violent storms battered the venue at Shunyi, just to the north of Beijing.

Only semi-finals of canoe doubles were completed before weather worsened and schedule was halted for security reasons.

The semi-finals of rowing, due to take place at the same venue, were also cancelled until Friday. Poor visibility and a lack of wind meant the latest races in the Finn and Yngling sailing competition were unable to get underway and were set to move to Friday, organisers said.

German shooter Christine Brinker, who collected a bronze in the women's skeet final at the Beijing Shooting Club, claimed the conditions were tough. "My feet and shoes are very wet," she said after securing third place. "The rain made it very difficult to shoot."

Heavy rain put Olympic tennis quarter-finals on hold with thunderstorms and heavy rain set to bring chaos to tournament.

Top seed Roger Federer was due to face US number one James Blake while Rafael Nadal had an apparently simple task against Austria's Jurgen Melzer.

France's Paul-Henri Mathieu and Gael Monfils were up against Fernando Gonzalez and Novak Djokovic respectively.

In the women's draw, Serena Williams is up against Elena Dementieva and Venus Williams plays Chinese hope Li Na.

World number one Jelena Jankovic plays Russian sixth seed Dinara Safina with Sybille Bammer and Vera Zvonareva contesting the last semi-final spot.

[TigerLikesRooster]

In another news:

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20080815-154787/Lightning-injures-9-tourists-on-Great-Wall-in-Beijing

Lightning injures 9 tourists on Great Wall in Beijing

Agence France-Presse

First Posted 07:42:00 08/15/2008

BEIJING -- Lightning strikes on the famed Great Wall in Beijing injured a total of nine Chinese and foreign tourists on Thursday, state media reported.

The three Americans, two visitors from Hong Kong and four from other Chinese provinces were hurt at about 2:30 pm (0630 GMT) when lightning hit a balefire tower on the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, Xinhua news agency said.

Quoting the emergency response office of the suburban Huairou District government, the report said the nine were receiving treatment in hospital but were not in danger.

The heavy rain, lightning and thunder also caused havoc at the Beijing Olympic Games, forcing some events to be rescheduled.

Maybe their weather control program backfired.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Or is it Rove’s weather machine overwriting Beijing’s ?

[OCC]

2 weeks ago, the smog was the big story. Have any events been affected by stanky air?

[wastedyears]

If I was doing rowing, I would’ve been in the boat, tapping the water with my hand.

[coconutt2000]

Hot News: “China Fakes Good Weather - Downpour Proves Propaganda Machine Does Not Work Like Weather Machine”