I’ve been blogging over at Sports Illustrated’s FanNation site for the last few months and I’ve checked in over here a bit as well, something I’ll be doing more of in the weeks and months to come. So much of the China-related sports news has been political in the past month that it’s been tough to balance everything out - how much time to spend digesting and commenting on the political issues, while trying to remember that we’re getting ready for a sporting event, one that will be the highlight of most of the athletes’ competitive careers.

This week at FanNation I’ve posted entries on the contrasting news of the week (the torch in Hong Kong, to a mostly supportive reception; contrasted with the Tibet-China talks coming up this weekend and the criticism Beijing continues to dole out to the Tibetan side); Yao Ming’s recovery and his prognosis for the Olympics (quick note: it’s all good); and an update on the Olympic men’s basketball tournament. Check it all out here.