U.S., U.K. activists try to grab Olympic spotlight

Tethong’s group identified the protesters as Thom, 24, of Scotland; Lucy Marion, 23, of England; Phill Bartell, 34, of Bridgewater, N.J.; and Tirian Mink, 32, of Portland, Ore.

While Beijing has announced that it would allow applications for public protests in three designated areas, it isn’t immediately clear if any had been accepted. None of the protests Wednesday were in the designated areas.

China’s rights record and its policies in Tibet and Sudan have been a flash point in the run-up to Olympics.

Former Olympic speedskater Joey Cheek had his visa revoked by Chinese authorities Wednesday, hours before he was set to travel to Beijing to urge the government to help make peace in Darfur.

Beard, the reigning Olympic champion in the 200-meter breaststroke, on Wednesday unveiled a poster of herself naked in support of the anti-fur activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The poster’s launch was planned for a hotel but happened outside the Athlete’s Village after Chinese authorities canceled the hotel event.

In Italy, two allies of Premier Silvio Berlusconi triggered an uproar by asking Italian athletes to protest China’s human rights policies with symbolic gestures during the Beijing Olympics — even possibly boycotting the opening ceremony.

The suggestion that athletes could even boycott Friday’s opening ceremony sparked angry reactions from Italian athletes and sports officials in Beijing, and even Berlusconi’s political allies back in Rome.

“Why are they asking sports to replace politics?” Gianni Petrucci, the head of Italy’s Olympic Committee, asked Wednesday from Beijing. “Why don’t they ask businessmen to desert China?”

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