Alina Kabaeva was first linked to Putin more than a decade ago, while she was a medal-winning gymnast.
China is going to be an indispensable partner in Russia's ongoing crisis with the US, while on its part, China cannot remain indifferent if Russia gets crushed by the US, lest it loses 'strategic depth', observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Olympic quick takes - Brazil lifter Reis suspended from Games after positive drug test.
North Korea made its decision to pull out of Tokyo at a meeting of its Olympic committee and Sports Minister Kim Il Guk on March 25, the ministry said on its website.
Kim did not rule out diplomacy with the Biden administration despite that Pyongyang called Biden a 'rabid dog' after Biden labelled Kim a 'thug'.
Japan's Mima Ito took the bronze medal after beating Han Ying of Germany in straight games.
The award committee recognised his contribution to the growth of Indian and global economies, crediting 'Modinomics' for reducing social and economic disparity between the rich and the poor.
'Xi Jinping is keen that the second Trump-Kim summit happens soonest.' 'Kim is reported to have told Xi that he expects to achieve a result from a second summit that the international community would welcome,' points out Dr Rajaram Panda.
The committee lauded Modi's initiatives to make the government cleaner through anti-corruption measures and demonetisation, it said.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
The two Koreas have agreed to pursue a bid to co-host the 2032 Olympic Games, they said in a joint statement on Wednesday following a summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
Indonesia president Joko Widodo declared the 18th Asian Games open in a glittering ceremony on Saturday, launching what promises to be a frenetic fortnight of breathless sporting action featuring the best of the continent's athletes.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
Both sides also agreed at a round of talks on their heavily fortified border to hold a series of basketball matches in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang on July 3-6, marking the anniversary of a July 4, 1972, inter-Korean agreement on unification, they said.
In the Russian president's eyes, it sends a message of defiance to the world and his own people which fits his favoured storyline: Russia is succeeding despite Western efforts to hold it back.
'Trump forgets that Kim is not one who likes to be treated publicly as a pauper; he wants to come to the table as an equal, and from a position of perceived strength, not as a suppliant,' says Dr Rajaram Panda.
The Korean summit, laden with symbolism in everything from the choice of location to the mango mousse for dessert, could just be the first round in a continuing dialogue, says Dr Rajaram Panda.
South Korean President's office says Kim promised to close N Korea's nuclear test site next month.
After entering the Peace House for the inter-Korean summit, Kim wrote in the guest book 'a new history begins now'.
Trump said it would be tremendous for the world if the meeting went well.
North Korea will take part in the next two Olympic Games in Japan and China, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said on Saturday after meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang.
'The coming two months could unfold unpredictable results or unpredictable consequences or both at the same time,' says Rajaram Panda.
They cheer, dance and sing in perfect unison. But these are not your ordinary cheerleaders.
North Korean pair given warm welcome on Pyeongchang debut
The Finns started using the unique method of stress relief at the Sochi Games, where they knitted a scarf. Two years later at the Rio Olympics they added to it.
The virus had broken out in the lead-up to the opening ceremony in Pyeongchang last Friday and led to some 1,200 security staff being quarantined. Organisers had to call in military personnel to replace them.
South Koreans learn how to talk to the enemy
The Russians had appealed their exclusion from the Games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over the doping scandal from the 2014 Sochi Games.
The IOC said in a statement that the North and South have agreed to march under a single flag at the opening ceremony and would field a united team in the women's ice hockey.
The two Koreas agreed during rare talks on Wednesday to form a combined women's ice hockey team to take part in next month's Winter Olympics in the South.
The two countries, technically still at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended with a truce, agreed on Tuesday that North Korea would send a large delegation across the border to next month's Games.
South Korea proposed that athletes from the two Koreas march together at the Games' opening ceremony and other joint activities between the two nations during the Winter Olympics.
Former world number 11 Shahar Peer, the most successful Israeli woman to play on the WTA Tour, announced her retirement because of injury on Tuesday.
There are moments at the Olympic Games that have a sporting significance, and then there are those that leave an indelible mark on humanity.
The largest athlete's village in the history of the Games is a visceral monument to now-faded optimism. Planned when Brazil was booming, its harnessing of private sector wealth was meant to set the gold standard for a sustainable Olympics. Instead, the worst recession in generations pushed the luxury apartments out of reach.
Traditional Indian sports have been played in villages since ages. Though most sports lovers in the country follow cricket, hockey, tennis and even English football on television, disciplines like kabaddi, archery and wrestling are fast catching up. But there are some sports people hardly know anything about. Take a look.
The Indian Army is the largest voluntary army and, next to China, the second largest army in the world. It is also a large conglomeration of values, experience, regimentation, customs, traditions, ethos and culture.
The very future of the Indian State, suddenly, is in question. And it is mostly from self-inflicted, avoidable wounds. The failure of leadership is causing India to cease to exist.
If you're planning to make the trip, we're looking out for the best places to stay, eat, party and of course see all the action!
North and South Korea are at loggerheads over which national anthems and flags will be used when the two countries meet in a World Cup qualifier next month.
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