Look forward to meeting Kim Jong-un; US talking to N Korea directly: Trump

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the US was in direct talks with North Korea "at a very high level" ahead of his planned summit with Kim Jong-un.

The two countries were looking at five potential venues for the summit, "but it is not in the United States", Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago where he was hosting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

"We've also started talking to North Korea directly.We have had direct talks at very high levels -- extremely high levels -- with North Korea," Trump said before a restricted bilateral meeting with Abe.

"I really believe there's a lot of goodwill. A lot of good things are happening.We'll see what happens.As I always say, we'll see what happens.Because ultimately, it's the end result that counts, not the fact that we're thinking about having a meeting or having a meeting," he said.

CAS opens case into Russian athlete's doping case in Winter Olympics

The Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday announced that it has opened a case for possible doping involving an Olympic athlete from Russia who won bronze in the mixed doubles curling at the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games.

The CAS confirmed in a statement released on Monday that its anti-doping division had opened a new case involving Russian athlete Aleksandr Krushelnitckii, reports Efe.

Russian media reports state that Aleksandr Krushelnitckii, who competed jointly with his compatriot Anastasia Bryzgalova in mixed doubles curling, had tested positive for meldonium, included in the list of banned substances in early 2016.

Krushelnitckii was competing at PyeongChang as a neutral after Russia and the Russian Olympic Committee were banned from participating over the doping scandal which rocked the Sochi Games in 2014.

US VP Mike Pence avoids Olympics encounter with North Korean official

US Vice-President Mike Pence on Friday skipped a dinner hosted by South Korean President Moon Jae-in at which he was due to share a table with North Korea's ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam ahead of the opening of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

Pence briefly encountered Kim but they tried to avoid directly facing each other, with Pence leaving the venue only after a five-minute stay, reported Yonhap news agency.

The top US official was originally scheduled to sit at the head table with the South Korean host and North Korea's chief delegate to the Winter Games.

Pence has brought Fred Warmbier, the father of a young American who died after being released from prison in North Korea, as a guest to South Korea.

Sporting events that rocked world politics, from Hitler to Nixon

The Winter Olympics starting this week in South Korea are the latest in a string of sporting events that have helped shape global politics.

Whether it be an emerging power challenging a dominant one (1908), a dictator looking for a propaganda coup (1936) or a terrorist group looking to shock the world (1972), global sporting events are often more about what goes on away from the playing field.

This year, South Korean President Moon Jae-in invited North Korea in the hope that a detente would help avert a devastating war over its nuclear program. While it’s unclear if the Games will lead to a lasting peace, they’ve already been successful for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un: He’s grabbed more headlines than any of the athletes.