In addition to typically high ratings for swimming events, the 2008 competition will feature two of the biggest stars of the U.S. Olympic Team in Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff, both of whom will be going for gold on an almost daily basis throughout the first week of competition.

The potential decision has infuriated much of the swimming community, many of whom believe that the IOC is simply trying to please its biggest television supporter.

"I don't think it's fair,” former World Champion swimmer Michael Klim told The Australian. “I think swimming is one of the biggest sports of the Olympics and I don’t think we should be pandering to the American dollar.”

NBC’s tape-delayed primetime coverage of the 2006 Olympic Winter Games struggled to compete against ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” and “American Idol.” Beijing is 12 hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time.

NFL HEADED TO CHINA

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks will take part in the NFL‘s first foray into China when they meet in an exhibition game, slated for Aug. 8, 2007 in Beijing.

At the NFL meetings this past March, outgoing commissioner Paul Tagliabue discussed the idea of the league staging a game in China in the near future, possibly as part of the one-year countdown to the Opening Ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games.

“Our own international people have been to China a number of times,” Tagliabue said. “I was there last May and met with representatives of the City of Beijing, their Olympic Committee and the mayor of Beijing.

The Patriots will travel to Seattle for a preseason game against the Seahawks at Qwest Field before both teams head overseas.. After a few days of interviews, practices and public appearances, the teams will play to a sold out crowd of 72,000 at Beijing’s Workers Stadium.

The game will be televised on NBC, which will use the game as both a promotional tool and a dry run for its 2008 Olympic Games staff.

2016 LIST SHRINKS, TOKYO EMERGES

The list of possible U.S. cities hoping to host the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016 was cut down from five to three last month. Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago are still in the running. Houston and Philadelphia didn’t make the cut.

The USOC expects to make a decision, both on if, and what city it will submit to the IOC as its official candidate city sometime early next year.

Also last month, as expected, the Japanese Olympic Committee named Tokyo as its 2016 candidate city. Tokyo hosted the Games of the  XVIII Olympiad back in 1964. It was the first time the Olympics were held on Asian soil. The country has also hosted two Olympic Winter Games, Sapporo in 1972 and most recently Nagano in 1998.

The IOC will award the 2016 Games in October of 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark.