South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Tuesday on eased eurozone debt concerns ahead of a meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB), analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 2.99 points, or 0.16 percent, to 1,846.78 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares traded mixed with market bellwether Samsung Electronics rising 1.49 percent and the country's biggest

LONDON - Ajmal Faisal, Afghanistan's sole boxer at the Olympics, said just getting to London for the Games had been a triumph after he lost in the first round here on Monday.The 21-year-old was well beaten 22-9 by experienced French flyweight Nordine Oubaali but said opposition from Taliban insurgents and a dearth of facilities in Afghanistan had severely hampered his ability to train."I lived out

Kim Un-Guk sets a new world record in the men's -62kg weightlifting class on Monday. (London Olympic Joint Press Corps) LONDON - Charismatic North Korean Kim Un-Guk equaled one world record in the snatch and broke another in the total to set up an emphatic victory in the men's -62kg weightlifting class on Monday.Kim snatched 153kg, also a new Olympic record, to match Chinese lifter Shi Zhiyong's w

Michel Morganella (AFP)LONDON - Switzerland footballer Michel Morganella has been sent home from the Olympics after posting a racist message on Twitter, team officials confirmed on Monday.Morganella had directed an offensive Tweet at South Korea's players after Switzerland's 2-1 defeat to the Asian giants on Sunday."Michel Morganella has discriminated against, insulted and violated the dignity of

LONDON - Ihab Almatbouli made history as he became the first boxer from Jordan to win an Olympic bout here on Monday.The 26-year-old, put on a classy display to defeat Nigerian Lukmon Lawal 19-7 in a light-heavyweight contest.Alamtbouli, who lives in and comes from the Palestinian refugee camp of Al-Baqaa (which has a population of around a 100,000) on the outskirts of Amman, was already the first

Kobe Bryant (London Olympic Joint Press Corps)LONDON - Not only does Kobe Bryant think the US Olympic team of NBA stars could beat the 1992 Dream Team, but he says the 2008 gold medal squad he played upon would defeat the 2010 US world champions. With five members of both the 2008 and 2010 squads on the American squad at London, that's a challenge for Olympic bragging rights just waiting to happen

Andy Roddick (Yonhap News)LONDON - Andy Roddick set up an Olympic Games clash with world number two Novak Djokovic as the three-time Wimbledon runner-up defeated Martin Klizan 7-5, 6-4 in the first round of the Games on Monday.Former world number one Roddick will meet 2011 Wimbledon winner Djokovic for a place in the last 16 following the American's gritty victory over Slovakia's Klizan in a match

LONDON  - Wendy Houvenaghel is preparing to return to her profession as a dentist -- but only once she has helped Britain bid for Olympic gold in the inaugural women's team pursuit event.The Northern Irishwoman, who became a full-time athlete at the late age of 31, won Olympic silver in the individual event at Beijing four years ago.Now with the event no longer part of the Olympic programme, she i

Kim Jae-bum (London Olympic Joint Press Corps)LONDON -- Kim Jae-bum, a silver medalist in the men's under-81-kilogram judo at the Beijing Olympics, will try to win his first Olympic gold on Tuesday.It would also be South Korea's first judo gold in London, after title favorite Wang Ki-chun was knocked out of the semis in the men's under-73kg class Monday.Preliminaries continue for badminton players

South Korean stocks finished 0.8 percent higher Monday on optimism that European policymakers will take action to ease the debt crisis, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 14.63 points to close at 1,843.79. Trading volume was moderate at 333.1 million shares worth 3.8 trillion won ($3.3 billion) with gainers

South Korean female swimmer Jeong Da-rae reacts while watching the men’s 200m freestyle semifinal in which Park Tae-wan was participating on Sunday at the London Olympic Park Aquatics Center in London. (London Olympic Joint Press Corps)

The offspring of mothers on a low-protein diet are more likely to develop hypertension as adults, U.S. researchers say.Drs. Haijun Gao, Uma Yallampalli and Chandra Yallampalli of the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston said in rats, the high maternal testosterone levels associated with a low-protein diet are caused by reduced activity of an enzyme that inactivates testosterone.This inc

Cameron van der Burgh (London Olympic Joint Press Corps)LONDON - Cameron van der Burgh's 100m breaststroke world record denied Kosuke Kitajima a historic treble and gave South Africa an Olympic swimming first on Sunday.Van der Burgh was never headed, winning in 58.46sec to better the previous world record of 58.58sec held by Australian Brenton Rickard.He became the first South African man to claim

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Monday driven by optimism that European leaders will take practical actions to save the euro, analysts said.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 19.08 points, or 1.04 percent to 1,848.24 in the first 15 minutes of trading.Shares gathered ground across the board, with top-cap Samsung Electronics jumping 2.35 percent and leading c

LONDON - China surged clear at the top of the Olympic medals table on Sunday, as two world records fell in the pool on a night when France stunned swimming's superpowers to take a dramatic relay gold.After dominating day one of competition with four gold medals, Chinese athletes hit paydirt once again with wins in shooting for Guo Wenjun and synchronised divers Wu Minxia and He Zi.Guo successfully

LONDON - Spain's bid to add Olympic gold to their world and European titles ended in failure on Sunday with a shock 1-0 loss to Honduras.Jerry Bengtson's seventh-minute header at St. James' Park, the striker's third goal in two games, condemned Spain to an early exit following their opening defeat by Group D leaders Japan.In a fractious match featuring 13 bookings, Spain's Iker Muniain hit the pos

(Yonhap News)LONDON - US NBA stars and European champions Spain each overcame slow starts to win their Olympic openers with ease on Sunday, serving notice they remain the teams to beat in the fight to reach the gold medal game.With US First Lady Michelle Obama among those watching, Kevin Durant scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Americans to a 98-71 win over France, with the US

(London Olympic Joint Press Corps)LONDON -- Wang Ki-chun brings his world No. 1 ranking to the men's under-73-kilogram competition Monday. He took silver at the Beijing Olympics after suffering a rib injury in the semifinals and will look to do one better here this time.Swimmer Park Tae-hwan will also have a chance to improve on his Beijing performance in men's 200-meter freestyle Monday. He won s

LONDON -- In the men's team archery event at the London Olympics, Italy edged the U.S. by one point, 219-218, thanks to a perfect 10 by the final shooter, Michele Frangilli.Although the South Koreans had lost to the Americans and were relegated to the bronze medal match against Mexico, there was still a very distinct Korean flavor among the final four.The top four nations are all coached by South

LONDON -- South Korea had on Saturday everything a country could possibly have on a single day at an Olympic Games: a feel-good gold medal; a silver medal that almost ever came; and a bronze medal that seemed as disappointing as an Olympic medal could be.Pistol shooter Jin Jong-oh captured South Korea's first gold medal in London in the men's 10-meter air pistol event. It was also the country's fi