An old saying recited to young athletes time and time again is that cheaters never prosper.  According to the decision by the International Olympics Committee to revoke the gold medals of the relay-mates of admitted steroid user Marion Jones, neither do their teams. What if such a standard, penalizing entire teams for the poor behavior of an individual, were applied to some more prominent team sports? As Bill Littlefield comments, it might change the way some athletes operate.

The Olympic Torch is supposed to symbolize high ideals of international cooperation and competition.  However, protests aimed at the torch have put an issue of international discord in the spotlight.  The protests may be uncomfortable to watch, but as Bill Littlefield comments, there is no better place than the Olympics to remind the world of what truly matters. 

In light of recent comments criticizing the potential boycott of this summer’s Olympic Games, Bill Littlefield got to thinking.  Would forgoing a trip to Beijing truly be the worst idea humanity ever stumbled upon?  As Bill comments, those who consider ditching the games a mortal sin may want to re-consider.

The official word from the Chinese government is that the air quality in Beijing has improved for nine consecutive years.

Haile Gebrselassie, the world’s fastest marathoner, is not convinced.

Listen to the Full Show:
Audio for http://www.bu.edu/wbur/storage/2008/02/onlyagame_0209.mp3

This week, the NBA at the season’s middle, a trip to the US Table Tennis Olympic Qualifiers and don your funny hats and grab your muzzle loaders, it’s the primitive biathlon!