Nearly naked David Beckham statues unveiled

H&M UNVEILS GIANT NEARLY NUDE STATUES OF DAVID BECKHAM.

If you live in NYC, SF, or LA, you’ll be able to take a picture with several silver David statues. But these aren’t replicas of the Michelangelo’s David that you can find in Florence, they’re an homage to another David.

Image credit: Instagram user lubombs

The 10 foot tall statues of David Beckham are slightly more PG than Michelangelo’s version- he still has chiseled muscles, but instead of being completely nude, he’s wearing boxer briefs. Fans eager to ‘touch’ Beckham can find nine statues in H&M stores and on the streets of the three cities. (New York must have the most die-hard Beckham fans, as 6 are dedicated to Manhattan while 2 are located in LA and only 1 in SF- see a list of locations here.)

The statues promote the launch of the 2nd line of the David Beckham Bodywear collection for H&M; one lucky fan will win a $1,000 H&M shopping spree, 100 will receive a miniature version of the ‘David’ statue, and, perhaps the real jackpot, 10 entries will win a signed pair of undies from Beckham himself. The campaign is organized through Instagram- snap a picture of yourself looking lovingly at the statue, tag it with #HMBeckham, and you’re entered to win. The contest runs from August 16th to August 31st.

Image credit: Instagram user Lucky Magazine

The statues, although larger than life, pale in comparison to a recent PR stunt for the brand in the UK; images of Beckham in his underwear were projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover to ‘welcome’ visitors flying into London for the 2012 Olympics.

H&M Beckham

via PSFK: http://www.psfk.com/2012/08/david-beckham-statues.html#ixzz23rhxjOEH

Ryan Lochte

Lochte was born in Canandaigua, New York in 1984, the son of Steven R. and Ileana M. Lochte. His father is a swim coach and his mother is a day care director. His mother is Cuban, and was born and raised in Havana, and his father is of German and English descent. He has two older sisters, Kristin and Megan, two younger brothers, Devon, and adopted brother Brandon. He is a 2002 graduate of Spruce Creek High School in Port Orange, Florida. Lochte attended the University of Florida and graduated in 2007, majoring in sport management. Initially, Lochte was not interested in swimming and often fooled around during practice. Lochte only began taking swimming seriously when he was a junior in high school.As a part of the Florida Gators swimming and diving team, he swam for coach Gregg Troy. At Florida, Lochte was the NCAA Swimmer of the Year twice, a seven-time NCAA champion, a seven-time SEC champion, and a twenty-four time All-American. At the 2006 NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships, during his senior year, Lochte won individual titles in all three of his individual events, setting U.S. Open and American records in the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard backstroke.He also broke Tom Dolan's nearly decade-old NCAA record in the 400-yard individual medley. He is currently sponsored by Speedo and Gatorade.

     

    

Lots of sex at Olympic Village

USA goalkeeper Hope Solo (Getty Images)

Perhaps it's just to release stress or just the thousands of taut and toned physiques on show but expect plenty of free love at the Olympic Village at the upcoming London Games.

At least that's if history repeats itself.

US Olympic gold medalist Hope Solo, who recently gave an insight on what went on the behind-the-scenes during her two-week stay at the Olympic Village back in 2008 in Beijing, said there's "lots of sex going on".

The 30-year-old goalkeeper, who will be heading to the London Games with the US women's national football team, told ESPN in an interview, "With a once-in-a-lifetime experience, you want to build memories, whether it's sexual, partying or on the field. I've seen people having sex right out in the open. On the grass, between buildings, people are getting down and dirty."

Apparently, she's not the only one who's seen the "down and dirty" side of the Olympics.

US swimmer Ryan Lochte believes "70 per cent to 75 per cent of Olympians" hook up behind the scenes, adding "Hey, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do."

There was so much action at the Games that even celebs joined in the fun with the athletes.

Solo said, "I probably shouldn't tell you this, but we met a bunch of celebrities. Vince Vaughn partied with us. Steve Byrne, the comedian. And at some point we decided to take the party back to the village.

"We started talking to the security guards, showed off our gold medals, got their attention and snuck our group through without credentials -- which is absolutely unheard of."

"I may have snuck a celebrity back to my room without anybody knowing, and snuck him back out," Solo added. "But that's my Olympic secret."

Singapore will be sending 23 athletes to the London Games.

Thousands of competitors are now descending upon the Athletes Village and training camps ahead of the Games which start on 27 July.

About 17,000 athletes and officials are expected to live at the village, which is located inside the Olympic Park and close to main stadium and swimming venue.

Let the fun begin.

London Olympics opening ceremony: All eyes on spectacular Games opening

LONDON: All eyes turn to London on Friday for theopening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, an exuberant journey from Britain's idyllic pastures through the grime of the Industrial Revolution and ending in a contemporary world dominated by popular culture. 

The three-hour showcase created by Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle will be watched by a crowd of 60,000 in the main stadium built in a run-down area of London's East End and a global audience of more than a billion. 

Spectators will be urged to join in sing-a-longs and help create spectacular visual scenes at an event that sets the tone for the sporting extravaganza, when 16,000 athletes from 204 countries share the thrill of victory and despair of defeat with 11 million visitors. 

The Games will also answer the question on Britons' lips -- were seven years of planning, construction and disruptions, and a price tag of $14 billion during one of the country's worst recessions, actually worth it? 

"This is a very, very tense moment but so far I'm cautiously optimistic," said Boris Johnson, mayor of London, the only city to host the Summer Games three times. 

"I'm just worried that I haven't got enough to worry about at the moment," added the mayor, known for his witty asides. 

There have, however, been bumps along the way. Media coverage in the last few weeks has been dominated by security firm G4S's admission that it could not provide enough guards for Olympic venues, meaning thousands of extra soldiers had to be deployed at the last minute, despite its multi-million-dollar contract from the government. 

Counter-terrorism chiefs have played down fears of a major attack on the Games, and British Prime MinisterDavid Cameron said that a safe and secure Olympics was his priority. 

"This is the biggest security operation in our peacetime history, bar none, and we are leaving nothing to chance." 

Suicide attacks on London in July, 2005, killed 52 people, and this year also coincides with the 40th anniversary of the 1972 Munich massacre when 11 Israeli Olympic team members were killed by Palestinian militants. 

Calls for an official commemoration of the tragedy at the opening ceremony have so far been refused. 

Heavy traffic in central London and severe delays on Britain's creaking train system have added to the grumbling. 

A diplomatic faux pas on Wednesday, when the flag of South Korea appeared at a women's soccer match between North Korea and Colombia, prompted North Korea's players to walk off the pitch and delayed kick-off by more than an hour. 

"Of course the people are angry," North Korea's Olympic representative Ung Chang told Reuters. "If your athlete got a gold medal and put the flag probably of some other country, what happens?" 

A series of doping scandals have also tarnished the Games' image in the buildup, with at least 11 athletes banned so far, and Greek triple jumper Paraskevi Papachristou became the Olympics' first "twitter victim" when she was withdrawn from the team over tweeted comments deemed racist.


SATANIC MILLS 

All of that is likely to be forgotten as attention around the globe turns to the opening ceremony, which begins at 2000 GMT and ends more than three hours later. 

While Boyle has urged the 10,000 participating volunteers and large crowds at rehearsals this week to keep the show a secret, some elements are already in the public domain. 

Inspired by William Shakespeare's "The Tempest", it opens with a recreation of bucolic bliss, complete with fields, fences, hedges, sheep, geese, a shire horse, shepherdesses and even a game of village cricket. 

The mood then darkens as "England's green and pleasant land", from a poem by William Blake, makes way for the sooty chimneys and smoking steel works of the "dark Satanic Mills", evoking the 19th century urban settings of Dickens. 

Stirring music from Britain's past and present provides the soundtrack, which comes to the fore in the final phase, a psychedelic celebration of pop culture including songs, sitcoms and cinema classics. 

Boyle's ode to the National Health Service, a politically charged topic in Britain where people are emotionally tied to the ideal of a welfare state, may make less sense to people watching from afar. 

But a closing performance by ex-Beatle Paul McCartney should have global appeal for a ceremony likely to contrast sharply with Beijing's tightly choreographed, large-scale version. 

Boyle had 27 million pounds ($42 million) to spend on his spectacular, well under half the amount estimated to have been spent in China in 2008. 

There are still plenty of secrets, including who will have the honour of lighting the Olympic cauldron, although soccer player David Beckham and popular royal Prince William have been reported as possible torch bearers. 

William's grandmother Queen Elizabeth will be in the crowd, along with U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama and a host of dignitaries and celebrities. 

BOLT OR BLAKE? 

The first main day of sport is Saturday, when Briton Mark Cavendish is favourite to win gold in the road race in what would be the perfect start for the home nation. 

Britain's hopes are high overall after a successful Games in Beijing, although the United States, China and Russia could dominate the medals table yet again. 

Among the most mouthwatering contests is the men's 100 metres final, traditionally the blue riband event of the Games, with Jamaican Usain Bolt's domination of the discipline under threat from training partner and compatriot Yohan Blake. 

Bolt, fastest man on earth, is vying to do what no man has done before -- successfully defend the 100m and 200m Olympic titles, and, despite fitness concerns, he is talking tough. 

"This is my time," he declared in a newspaper interview this week. "This will be the moment, and this will be the year, when I set myself apart from other athletes around the world." 

If Bolt and Blake make the final, the Aug. 5 race will rival the Carl Lewis-Ben Johnson clash at the 1988 Seoul Olympics for drama and excitement. 

U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps will also be looking to cement his place as the world's greatest swimmer by adding to the eight gold medals he won in Beijing.