USA men’s and women’s basketball teams come out on top
Both USA basketball teams are gold medal winners following the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lisa Leslie became the first basketball player to earn four golds as the women beat Australia this past weekend. Meanwhile, LeBron James backed up his promise of a gold for the men – and likely shed his embarrassing nickname from past Olympics competition, “LeBronze.” The men defeated defending champion Spain. The 2012 Olympics are set to take place in London.

World Lens – Storm batters the Dominican Republic; Usain Bolt sprints to gold; Cubans celebrate Castro’s birthday. See the pics at World Lens.
=

A Jamaican sprinter makes Olympic history in Beijing

Winning by a full four body-lengths over American defending champ Shawn Crawford, Jamaica’s Usain Bolt made Olympic history Wednesday. Bolt became the first-ever sprinter to break world records and win gold medals in both the 100- and 200-meter races during one Olympics. “I blew my mind and I blew the world’s mind,” Bolt says. His 19.30 seconds in the 200 made him the first man since Carl Lewis to sweep gold medals from both sprints. Lewis did so in 1984. Bolt also beat Michael Johnson’s 12-year-old record of 19.32 seconds. Not even Olympics legend Jesse Owens completed a 100, 200 sweep. Get the latest on how the Americans did and more at BET.com/Olympics ‘08.

Sisters snatch gold medal for tennis doubles.

Venus and Serena Williams have proved they’re twice as nice after being eliminated from Olympics singles competition last week. The sisters captured a gold medal in the doubles tournament on Sunday after beating Spain’s Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-2, 6-0. “I’m so excited, I can’t even speak,” Venus says. “To share this kind of moment with your sister, it never grows old.”

Togo gets its first Olympic medal ever

Togo, a country in West Africa, recently won its first medal ever in an Olympic event, reports the BBC. Benjamin Boukpeti (above) took home the bronze medal in the men’s single kayak slalom in Beijing. He was so excited about the win that he broke his paddle in half. “I can hardly believe it, but I’m not surprised,” he said. Aside from earning his nation’s first Olympic medal, Boukpeti also became the first male kayaker to win an Olympic slalom medal who is not European. After the race he hugged and kissed his parents (his mother is French, his father Togolese). Alexander Grimm, from Germany, won gold and France’s Fabien Lefevre – who was originally picked to win it all – won silver. But the day belonged to Boukpeti. “This is unexpected; it is a good surprise for Togo. It is more than a beautiful surprise because many Togolese are not aware of this sport’s discipline,” said Cornelius Aidam, Togo’s minister for communication, culture and civic education.

Food shortage is affecting thousands in northern Kenya. A critical food shortage in northern Kenya is leaving tens of thousands at risk, reports the Integrated Regional Information Networks. Affected are areas in Baringo and East Pokot, which are in Kenya’s north Rift, according to a charity official. “There is an acute food shortage and the situation has been rated as alarming,” said Anthony Mwangi, the public relations manager with Kenya’s Red Cross Society (KRCS). Skyrocketing food prices, as well as a lack of rain leading, are to blame for the food crisis. In addition, the nation’s livestock is not selling as well as it used to due to the poor health of the animals. “The livestock are in poor condition and are fetching low prices in the markets,” he said. The shortage is affecting almost 100,000 thousand people in total (at least 64,000 in East Pokot and 32,000 in Baringo). During the shortage many youths (at least 5 percent) have been missing school. “They are staying behind to support their parents,” Mwangi said. Some starving residents have had to eat wild fruits and rodents. The Kenya Red Cross Society has stepped in to help, distributing 1,246 tons of food and food materials to those affected, Mwangi said.

NBA star tells Time US will win

In a recent issue of Time magazine, LeBron James guarantees that the USA will return to its past Olympics glory at the coming Beijing games. Comparing the anticipated thrill of taking the gold medal to opening gifts at Christmas, the NBA star is asked if he’s promising the top prize. “Absolutely,” James states twice. The Cleveland Cavaliers star sat out last Friday’s practice game with a sprained ankle, but he is expected to recover in time for the China competitions. The USA hasn’t taken gold in men’s basketball at the Olympics since 2000.

Kardashian expects proposal from Reggie Bush

The most recognizable, non-Black Hollywood personality who’s still known for her special physical assets says she expects an eventual proposal of marriage from NFL star Reggie Bush. Kim Kardashian tells an LA radio show hosted by “American Idol’s” Ryan Seacrest that she’s preparing for a wedding to Bush, who’s been dating her for about a year, though they’re not yet engaged. She’s planning ahead, she says, so that “whenever I get asked, there won’t be any drama.” Wonder if Reg knows he’s going to be asking.

New NBA franchise will choose from six options. The team formerly known as the Seattle SuperSonics has moved to Oklahoma City and needs a new ID. The NBA has filed for trademark rights to six nicknames for the Oklahoma City franchise: Barons, Bison, Energy, Marshalls , Thunder and Wind. The NBA and the team have refused to discuss possible new names publicly, until an official announcement is made. The league assigned Oklahoma City the former Seattle franchise that has boasted superstars such as Shawn Kemp and Ray Allen, after a court case resulted in the Sonics’ release from their agreement with Seattle ’s KeyArena.