Olympics: Meditating Buddhist monk saddles up for London He'd prefer enlightenment to a medal, but when Japan's horse-riding Buddhist monk Kenki Sato saddles up for London 2012, he'll be representing one of the Olympics' more unusual families.
'All the Bells' to ring out start of London Olympics Church bells, bicycle bells, handbells, ship's bells, and even mobile phones will sound across Britain in a "cacophonous, amazing sound" to mark the start of the Olympics.
Olympics: Italian legend seeks sixth gold Italian veteran Valentina Vezzali will seek to bring the curtain down on her career at the London Games by claiming a record sixth fencing gold.
Olympics: Russia seeks to regain superpower status Russia is seeking to win a treasure trove of gold medals across a dozen sports at the Olympics to remind the world it remains a sporting superpower two decades after the USSR's collapse.
Olympics: Gold and cash stir slumbering IndiaIndia used to be content with a steady stream of Olympic hockey titles, but a first individual win -- and millions of dollars in funding -- may have prodded the Asian giant from its slumbers.