大象传媒

Training to take part in the Olympics is an unforgiving business - years of hard work easily undone by injury, loss of form or even confidence. But for American middle distance runner Sarah Brown, her road to Rio took something of a more pronounced bump. A surprise pregnancy! In March, just five months before Rio 2016, Sarah gave birth, having continued to train throughout her pregnancy. Her goal is to make it to the Olympics by qualifying at the US trials in July.

Hooray for Houry:
Meet Houry Gebeshian. By day she delivers babies, by night she trains herself for the Rio Olympics! Houry, who in August will be Armenia鈥檚 first female Olympic Gymnast, takes us through what by anyone鈥檚 standards is a busy day!

The Kallur Comeback:
On the face of it there was nothing too remarkable about Sweden鈥檚 Susanna Kallur 5th place finish in 100m hurdles at the Diamond League in Stockholm this week鈥� Even so she completed a lap of honour after the race, accompanied by her three-year-old daughter. However considering this was her first competitive outdoor race in SIX years, it was probably deserved! She explains the reason behind such a lengthy abstinence from the track

Boys are Baku Town:
As the Azerbaijan capital Baku hosts its inaugural F1 Grand Prix on Sunday, Bernie Ecclestone has been asking 鈥淒o any of you know what human rights are?鈥� His philosophical lament was in response to questions raised about whether Azerbaijan is an appropriate venue for the sport. Significant concerns have been raised by groups such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty international about the treatment of those critical of President Aliyev's regime. We investigate.

The Iceland Cometh:
Can success on the field help shape national identity off it? We visit Iceland to speak to those wrapped up in Euro 2016 fever (including one of the country鈥檚 presidential candidates taking time off the campaign trail to catch some matches) and those who say the football is distracting from the real issues affecting the people of Iceland who elect a new President next Saturday.

Sporting Witness
Greek weightlifter, Pyrros Dimas, is a three-time Olympic champion and national hero known variously as the "Lion of Himara" and "Midas" because of his ability to win gold medals. In 2004, an ageing Pyrros faced his toughest challenge when the Olympic Games came to Athens and he was forced to compete with a knee injury. Despite the pain, Pyrros battled to a bronze medal, sparking delirious scenes in the weightlifting arena.

(Photo: Sarah in training whilst pregnant. Credit: Sarah Brown)