London 2012: best of the web

Cameron takes time out for a spot of badminton

Seb Coe and David Cameron enjoyed a quick game of badminton on the PM's back lawn at Downing Street on Wednesday morning, and fortunately it was caught on video. After enduring a fairly torrid week off the badminton court, things got no better for the prime minister in his own back yard, as he put in a disappointing performance against Coe.

Female beach volleyballers given option to cover up

The International Volleyball Federation has said it will give female volleyball players at the London Olympics the option to cover up and wear less revealing uniforms as they attempt to respect the cultural beliefs of various countries competing. The IVF has given the go ahead for players to wear shorts and sleeved tops this summer, in addition to the bikinis and bodysuit that are already permitted.

Greene takes to Twitter for ticket help

One of Team GB's top gold medal hopes was this week given a helping hand by a fan after struggling to get hold of tickets for his family for this summer's games. The 400m hurdles world champion Dai Greene turned to Twitter for ideas after being allocated two tickets, like all competitors, for each of his sessions at the Games, as he was worried that his family would have to watch him race on a television at home. Matt de Monte, a fan of Greene's from London, offered to help, and within a week had brought eight tickets for Greene's semi-final and final, using £1,500 of his own money to pay for them, before Greene then paid him back. The runner was ecstatic that a complete stranger would help him in such way. "You don't hear of many stories like this. It's usually just doom and gloom – this is somebody going out of their way to help others," he said. While De Monte replied: "Anything which can help out athletes and Team GB achieve more at the Olympics is fantastic."

Archer's father accused of bullying rival

Jim Barnard, the father of Australian archery star Elisa Barnard, has been forbidden from going within 200 metres of her daughter's rival, 17-year-old Odette Snazelle. Snazelle took out an order against Jim Barnard ahead of this weekend's national championships in Canberra, where Barnard and Snazelle are two of the favourites. "Our biggest concern is that it could put pressure on not only the two girls in question, but also the other members of the team," said Archery Australia chief executive Jim Larven. "We're trying to support everybody."

Mongolia going for gold

The Mongolian Olympic team have received a surprise sponsor for London 2012: Rio Tinto, the Anglo-Australian mining giant. There is a reason behind the decision however, as the company are using gold from Mongolia to make all 4,700 medals for the Games. Mongolia are sending just 30 athletes to London but will be confident of going home with some medals after winning gold in judo and boxing in Beijing four years ago.

Venus back on track

Venus Williams's hopes of competing at London have been boosted by her form at the Sony Ericcson Open in Miami this week. According to the WTA rankings released on 19 March Venus is in 134th place – only the top 56 ranked players qualify for the Olympics. With 78 places currently standing between her and a place at the games Williams must up her game if she wishes to make it to the tournament. There are signs of a recent improval in form for the 21-time Grand Slam winner though, as she made it to the quarter-finals in Miami, only to be beaten by Agnieszka Radwanska.

Liu refusing to think about rivals

The former Olympic 110m hurdles champion Liu Xiang is determined to put the heartbreak of the 2008 Beijing Games behind him – when injury dashed his hopes – by focussing on his own running ahead of London. The injury Xiang sustained before Beijing four years ago kept him off the track until late in 2009, and the hurdler is confident he can overcome that disappointment with victory this summer. Liang told journalists at an event to promote the Shanghai leg of the Diamond League in May, that "the main thing is that I am competing against myself. They [his opponents] have their strengths and I have mine." Recent results have shown that Xiang's new starting technique, which uses seven strides before the first hurdle as opposed to his previous eight, has been detrimental to his performance, with the former Olympic champion finishing second in the 60m hurdles at the world indoor championships in Istanbul earlier this month.

Good week

Wallace Spearmon was understandably named USA Track and Field's athlete of the week after running a blistering 19.95sec 200m on Saturday at the UTA Bobby Layne Invitational in Arlington, Texas. It is the 22nd time that the American has run under 20 seconds, meaning he is now tied with Usain Bolt, with Frankie Fredericks record of 24 runs under 20 firmly in his sights.

Bad week

Players, fans and pundits alike were left shocked on Monday night as the USA Under 23 men's football side dropped out of the qualification places for the London Olympics after conceding a farcical last-minute equaliser to El Salvador. The two points dropped mean that USA are down to third in the group, and fail to qualify for the semi-finals. While USA mourn their exit, El Salvador celebrate, as their hopes of reaching the Olympics for only the second time remain alive.

Tweet of the week

"twitter please reactivate my dog's account. He promises not to post any more naked pictures. he'll keep his collar on next time." USA hurdler Lolo Jones's training has clearly stepped up a notch in the final few months before the Olympics get under way.