Political issues
FILE - Britain's Katie Ormerod competes during the women's slopestyle qualifying at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)
Winter Olympians champion climate, peace amid muted activism

By Kelvin Chan Feb. 15, 2022 03:06 AM EST

Kamila Valieva, of the Russian Olympic Committee, trains at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 13, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Olympic skater's entourage could face trouble under US law

By Eddie Pells Feb. 14, 2022 05:52 AM EST

FILE - Student activists wear masks with the colors of the pro-independence East Turkistan flag during a rally to protest the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, outside the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, Jan. 14, 2022. Dozens of students staged the rally demanding the cancellation of the Beijing Olympics over alleged human rights violations against Muslim Uyghur ethnic minority in China's region of Xinjiang. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana, File)
What message did China send by choosing Uyghur torchbearer?

By John Leicester Feb. 05, 2022 03:09 AM EST

FILE - Human right groups gather on the United Nations international Human Rights Day, Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, to call for a boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics 2022 in front of the Bank of China building in Taipei, Taiwan. Human rights activists issued a call to action against the Beijing Olympics on Friday, Jan. 28, 2022 imploring athletes and sponsors to speak out against what they call the "genocide games." (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying, File)
Activists urge athletes to speak out at Beijing Olympics

Jan. 28, 2022 05:06 AM EST

Drew Pavlou, left, and Max Mok show some of the 1,000 shirts they plan to hand out to patrons ahead of Saturday's women's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022. As he was being ejected for wearing a shirt with a Where is Peng Shuai? slogan, Max Mok saw an opportunity to amplify the message at the Australian Open. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
Where is Peng Shuai? Australian Open T-shirts grab attention

By John Pye Jan. 28, 2022 12:24 AM EST

FILE - A woman holds up a ligt candle and a phone showing the image of the 1989 tank man protester during a candle vigil to mark the anniversary of the military crackdown on a pro-democracy student movement in Beijing, outside Victoria Park in Hong Kong, Friday, June 4, 2021. As Beijing prepares to hold the Winter Olympics opening in February 2022, China's president and party leader Xi Jinping appears firmly in control. The party has made political stability paramount and says that has been the foundation for the economic growth that has bettered lives and put the nation on a path to becoming a regional if not global power. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)
From Tiananmen to Hong Kong, China's crackdowns defy critics

By Ken Moritsugu Jan. 27, 2022 12:20 AM EST

A man gets a throat swab for the COVID-19 test at a mobile coronavirus testing facility a residential area in Beijing, Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2022. With just over two weeks before the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics, residents of the Chinese capital say they’re disappointed at not being able to attend events because of coronavirus restrictions that have seen parts of the city placed under lockdown. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Beijing residents disappointed Olympics will be closed event

Jan. 19, 2022 04:12 AM EST

Student activists wear masks with the colors of the pro-independence East Turkistan flag during a rally to protest the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, outside the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, Jan. 14, 2022. Dozens of students staged the rally demanding the cancellation of the Beijing Olympics over alleged human rights violations against Muslim Uyghur ethnic minority in China's region of Xinjiang. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
Olympic athletes urged by activists not to criticize China

By Graham Dunbar Jan. 18, 2022 11:56 AM EST

Portugal's Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva, right, greets German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021. European Union foreign ministers met Monday to discuss how to thwart the threat of a possible new Russian invasion of Ukraine and what measures to take should Moscow decide to send its troops across the border. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
EU has little appetite to join US diplomatic Games boycott

By Raf Casert Dec. 13, 2021 07:08 AM EST

Protesters hold Tibetan flags during a protest against Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics by activists of the Tibetan Youth Association in Europe front of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021. (Jean-Guy Python/Keystone via AP)
Olympic leaders criticize FIFA as activists target meeting

By Graham Dunbar Dec. 11, 2021 10:12 AM EST

A visitor to the Shougang Park walks past the logos for the Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021. China on Monday, Dec. 6, 2021 threatened to take "firm countermeasures" if the U.S. proceeds with a diplomatic boycott of February's Beijing Winter Olympic Games. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
US plans diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics

By Aamer Madhani And Alexandra Jaffe Dec. 06, 2021 12:22 PM EST

FILE - Lamine Diack arrives at the Paris courthouse, on Jan. 13, 2020. Lamine Diack, the controversial former president of the International Athletics Federation, has died, his family said Friday, Dec. 3, 2021. He was 88. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)
Lamine Diack, ex IAAF chief convicted of corruption, dies

By Babacar Dione And Graham Dunbar Dec. 03, 2021 05:19 AM EST

The Olympic Flame burns at the cauldron in front of ancient Parthenon temple atop of the Acropolis hill in Athens, Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021. The flame will be transported by torch relay to Beijing, China, which will host the Feb. 4-20, 2022 Winter Olympics.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Rights activists urge boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics

By Nicholas Paphitis Oct. 19, 2021 03:45 AM EDT

Greek actress Xanthi Georgiou, right, playing the role of the High Priestess, holds the torch during the lighting of the Olympic flame at Ancient Olympia site, birthplace of the ancient Olympics in southwestern Greece, Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. The flame will be transported by torch relay to Beijing, China, which will host the Feb. 4-20, 2022 Winter Olympics. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
Protestors disrupt flame lighting for Beijing Winter Games

By Nicholas Paphitis And Thanassis Stavrakis Oct. 18, 2021 05:37 AM EDT

Actresses perform during the final rehearsal for the lighting of the Olympic flame at Ancient Olympia site, birthplace of the ancient Olympics in southwestern Greece, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. The flame will be transported by torch relay to Beijing, China, which will host the Feb. 4-20, 2022 Winter Olympics. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Weather, protest cloud Beijing flame-lighting rehearsal

By Nicholas Paphitis Oct. 17, 2021 07:03 AM EDT

Protesters raise a Tibetan flag and a banner from scaffolding at the Acropolis hill, in Athens, Greece, Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021. Three people attempted to hang a banner from the Acropolis in Athens Sunday morning in protest at the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics but were arrested before completing their mission. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
2 arrested in Athens for protesting Beijing Olympics

By Demetris Nellas Oct. 17, 2021 04:38 AM EDT

Ex-Kenya sports minister guilty in Olympic corruption case

Sep. 15, 2021 11:47 AM EDT
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya's former sports minister was convicted Wednesday of corruption and abuse of office relating to the misuse of more than $800,000...

FILE - In this file photo dated Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016, First Vice President of the International Swimming Federation, FINA, Husain Al Musallam, during the FINA World Aquatics Gala in Budapest, Hungary. Documents obtained by The Associated Press show two senior Olympic officials from Kuwait have been targeted by the U.S. Department of Justice for suspected racketeering and bribery related to FIFA and international soccer politics. Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah is reputed to be the “kingmaker” of IOC elections. Husain al-Musallam is president of swimming’s international governing body. The documents include details of the DOJ investigation and a formal request to Kuwaiti authorities in 2017 for help to secure evidence. (Attila Kovacs/MTI via AP, File)
Documents show US investigation of 2 Kuwaitis in FIFA case

By Graham Dunbar Sep. 02, 2021 11:43 AM EDT

FILE - In this Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018 file photo, Sheikh Ahmad al Fahad al Sabah, president of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) delivers a speech during the ANOC general assembly in Tokyo. The trial opened Monday, Aug, 30, 2021 of an influential Olympic official accused of forgery in an alleged plot that implicated political rivals in Kuwait in a coup attempt. Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah has been publicly sidelined as an IOC member and president of the global group of national Olympic bodies by the pending case. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, file)
Trial of Olympic sheikh on forgery charges opens in Geneva

By Graham Dunbar Aug. 30, 2021 08:06 AM EDT

FILE In this file pool photo taken on Saturday, April 4, 2020, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko takes part in a hockey match during Republican amateur competitions in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (Andrei Pokumeiko/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)
EXPLAINER: What is behind Belarus athlete's Olympics crisis?

By Yuras Karmanau And Vladimir Isachenkov Aug. 04, 2021 03:47 AM EDT