Free Republic

Lord Sebastian Coe, two-time British Olympic gold medalist, revered British Olympic long-distance runner, and chief of the London Olympic organizing committee, has said the unthinkable. Michael Phelps, in his estimation, is not the greatest Olympian of all time. Later today, American officials are expected to announce the termination of all diplomatic relations with Great Britain, withdraw embassy staff from London, and issue a new deck of "most wanted" playing cards with Lord Coe as the joker. For the record, his exact words, as reported by the Associated Press, were: "He is certainly the most successful. That goes without saying.... But...

London Olympic organizing committee chairman Sebastian Coe said there are ''lessons to be learned'' from the recent rioting in the British capital. Coe spoke publicly Thursday about the riots for the first time since violence broke out in north London on Saturday. BRITAIN RIOTS •Sebastian Coe weighs in •Organizers go ahead with test events •Tottenham Hotspurs opener delayed •Concern for 2012 Games •Soccer matches called off ''There are lessons to be learned," Coe said, "and over the next year, we will continue our contingency plans. They will deal with all sorts of things including public disorder.'' The four days of...