XXIX Olympiad in Beijing, August 8-24-Daily Olympic action on SBC TV |10 August 2008
The local TV station has said there will be three slots of Olympic Games action daily. The first will be from 8am to 10am, the second from 2pm to 6pm and the third at the end of station’s normal broadcasting hours. The third slot is an hour-long screening of the day’s highlights recorded at 10pm Seychelles time.
The first Seychellois athlete expected in action in Beijing is Shannon Austin. The former Sportslady of the Year is to plunge into the National Aquatic Centre, nicknamed the Water Cube, tomorrow to compete in the 400m freestyle event.
This is Austin’s second time at the Games after receiving an invitation, just as in 2004 in Athens, Greece, where she competed in the 100m breaststroke and clocked 1 minute 19.02 seconds.
Male swimmer Dwayne Didon is making his debut at the games at the age of 13 and he will compete in the 50m freestyle on Thursday August 14.
In weightlifting, Terrence Dixie will take part as an invitee on Friday August 15 in the 85kg 
Laser sailor Allan Julie will compete at the Qingdao Olympic Sailing Centre from August 12 to 19.
He is making his fourth games appearance after 1996 in Atlanta, USA (36th out of 56 sailors), 2000 in Sydney, Australia (28th out of 43) and 2004 in Athens, Greece (20th out of 42).
After receiving an invitation when he first took part in 1996, Julie qualified for the other three games. The 31-year-old achieved the Olympic qualifying standard for the Beijing Olympics in Portugal during the ISAF World Sailing Championship in July 2007.
Canoeist Tony Lespoir will be in action at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park on Monday and Tuesday August 18 and 19. He will compete in the K1500m and K1 1000m races.
He earned his qualification for the Olympics after taking second place and the silver medal in the K1 500m race during the Fifth Africa Canoe-Kayak Championship held in the Masinga Dam, Kenya, in January.
The 31-year-old 12-time canoeist of the year made his first appearance for Seychelles in the Olympiad in Athens after receiving a wild card. He reached the semifinal of the K1 500m flatwater competition at the state-of-the-art Schinias regatta centre.
Shuttlers Georgie Cupidon and Juliette Ah-Wan will compete in the mixed doubles event on Tuesday August 12.
They are Seychelles’ first badminton pair to qualify for the Olympic Games. The country’s illustrious mixed doubles duo finished first in Africa with 10,700 points in the Badminton World Federation rankings.
In track and field athletics at the National Stadium, sprinter Danny D’Souza, whose personal best is 10.80 seconds, will take part in the blue-riband 100m race on Friday August 15.
Making her first appearance at the games, twice former Sportslady of the Year Lindy Leveau-Agricole will compete in the javelin on Tuesday August 19.
She beat the ‘B’ qualifying standard of 56m with a throw of 56.49m in her second attempt, which earned her the silver medal at the Ninth All-Africa Games last year in Algiers, Algeria.
G. G.