China

Japan has thrown its hat into the ring to host the 2008 Summer Olympics, officially entering Osaka as its candidate and vowing a "clean" campaign to win the right to hold the games.

The China rally will be included in the world championship next season, International Automobile Federation (FIA) according president Max Mosley.

The 13th Asian Games have currently earned a total of 5,022 million baht inrevenue.

An IOC report says preliminary results indicate that the XVIII Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, were broadcast in more countries than ever before and that the global cumulative audience is likely to equal Lillehammer's record??.

Kai Tak airport in China is one of two new locations being considered for a world-class stadium, along with a site near Tuen Mun.

US LAWYER Alan Caplan says he and his colleagues have launched court action in California against Nike, alleging that it is deceiving consumers over the working conditions in its Asian factories, The Australian reports.

Chinese swimming officials have vowed to intensify a crackdown on drug abuse by conducting more tests and slapping life bans on steroid cheats, state media has said.

With Hong Kong's economy contracting, the territory's popular horseracing industry has found that fewer bettors are willing to try their luck.

Outbreaks of hooliganism by English and German fans in France should not affect those nations' bids to stage the 2006 World Cup finals, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said.

Washington and Baltimore are to announce an unprecedented joint bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games, according to the Washington Post.

Adidas, one of the World Cup's sponsors is cancelling all orders of footballs made in China after a report linked production with prison labour.

A Chinese prison official has dismissed allegations that prison labour was used to manufacture footballs in Shanghai for the Adidas sports label.

American wrestlers will attend an international tournament in Iran in September, months after a groundbreaking visit by a U.S. team which launched exchanges between the two hostile countries.

Several German politicians have levelled harsh criticism at ex-world champion Michael Schumacher over his crash with David Coulthard at the Belgian Grand Prix a week ago.

Bribery and match-fixing hamper the development of soccer in Southeast Asia, and a farcical game in the recent Tiger Cup championship has further tarnished the sport's image, coaches and officials said.

Five years after its bitter defeat to Sydney in the race for the 2000 Olympics, China looks ready to bid for 2008.