The Closing Ceremony in Beijing not only marked the conclusion of the 2008 Olympics but also the final Olympics that Peter Ueberroth would attend as chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee. Ueberroth’s term comes to an end this fall when he will transition into a non-voting role on the USOC’s board of directors. As the Beijing Games wrapped up, he sat down with SportsBusiness Journal staff writer Tripp Mickle to talk about the impact of the 2008 Olympics, the future of the USOC and the future of the Olympics.    Read More  >

For the first time in decades, Anheuser-Busch’s Tony Ponturo sits at the head of a global media and sports marketing division in flux. InBev recently completed an agreement to purchase the American beer company, which is expected to bring changes to Anheuser-Busch.

Ponturo spoke to SportsBusiness Journal staff writer Tripp Mickle about those potential changes and the impact of the 2008 Olympics while he was on the ground in Beijing.    Read More  >

Two top corporate hospitality and sports management experts said Beijing’s new airport functioned well Monday as thousands of customers and others left the Olympic city after the Closing Ceremony on Sunday night.    Read More  >

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Recognizing a gap in studies of Olympic marketing ahead of the 2008 Games, Asian marketing agency R3 and Chinese media research firm CSM Media Research launched an independent tracking and research division. Its quarterly studies have shed light on which Olympic sponsors are winning and losing on the ground in China. R3 Principal Greg Paull, who’s leading those studies, sat down with SportsBusiness Journal staff writer Tripp Mickle to talk about the results.    Read More  >

Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee chairman John Furlong said Friday, “We’re no longer second in line. In a few days, we’ll be first in line.”

The hosts of the 2010 Winter Olympics are feeling the uptick in interest. Communications Vice President Renee Smith-Valade said traffic to the VANOC Web site has increased fivefold since Aug. 8, when the Beijing Games began.    Read More  >

Steven Lopez (left) with siblings Mark, Diana and Jean

U.S. taekwondo athlete Steven Lopez followed gold medals at the 2000 Sydney Games and the 2004 Athens Games, the only two previous Olympiads in which taekwondo had been contested, with a bronze medal today in the men's 80 kg welterweight weight class. Steven and brother Mark, who won the silver medal in the men's 68 kg weight class, and sister Diana, who won the bronze medal in the women's 57 kg weight class, are repped by Ann Bleiker and her brother, Cecil Bleiker, of ABC Sports Management.    Read More  >

More than 2 million people have visited Coca-Cola’s 25 Olympic experience centers across China since the Games began, said Scott McCune, Coca-Cola’s vice president of worldwide sports, entertainment and licensing.    Read More  >

Looking to build on the interest in swimming sparked by the Beijing Games, USA Swimming and NBC Sports announced a partnership sure to make a splash. The partnership will result in the broadcast of the 2009 USA Swimming National Championships and the 2009 World Swimming Championships on NBC Sports and Universal Sports, NBC's newly minted Olympic channel.

NBC will provide weekend coverage of the 2009 World Championships and Universal Sports, the channel it co-owns with InterMedia Partners, will offer midweek coverage.    Read More  >

Speedo is one of Laura Wilkinson's main sponsors.

Laura Wilkinson, in her last Olympics, heads into today's 10-meter platform finals in sixth place, having won gold in the event in the 2000 Sydney Games. While diving certainly is among the sports that get little U.S. exposure between Olympics, it could end up being one of the crucial battlegrounds in the unofficial U.S.-China medal count rivalry, and a strong finish could catapult Wilkinson to the forefront of U.S. Olympic coverage.

Wilkinson’s agent, Octagon’s Janey Miller, described Speedo as Wilkinson’s “biggest sponsor, and her most important, because their commitment to the sport of diving has allowed Laura to stay in the sport.”    Read More  >

United Airlines has agreed to renew its sponsorship of the U.S. Olympic Team, signing an agreement to be the official airline of the USOC for the 2009-12 quadrennial. Sources valued the supplier-level deal in the $10 million range over the period of the contract. An announcement is expected later today.    Read More  >