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U.S. television presenter Oprah Winfrey arrives for the birthday dinner party of former president of South Africa Nelson Mandela at Hyde Park in London June 25, 2008
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Talk show host Oprah Winfrey threw a rousing welcome home party for more than 150 US Olympic medal winners on Wednesday that was a salute to the athletes and a pep rally for efforts to bring the 2016 summer games to America.
Winfrey, whose program is seen 140 countries and boasts a weekly US audience of 46 million, filled an open-air concert venue on Chicago's Lake Michigan waterfront with more than 4,000 people who jumped, shouted and cheered in swirling red, white and blue confetti as the medalists walked through the aisles and took the stage.
"Team USA, you want to make us all stand taller," she told the athletes at the end of the program, adding that she hoped they would have a chance to return to Chicago for the 2016 games, for which the city is bidding against Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo.
Swimmer Michael Phelps, who came back from last month's games in Beijing with a record eight gold medals, told Winfrey his feat had not sunk in but "I need to get back home" to Maryland to see friends and his pet bulldog.
"One of the biggest things I want to do is grow the sport of swimming," he added, noting that he has established a charitable foundation to promote the sport using the $1 million bonus he earned from the makers of Speedo swimwear.
Wednesday's show, which will air on September 8, marked the start of Winfrey's 23rd season.
Another swimming star, silver medalist Dara Torres, told Winfrey she was not done with competitive swimming at age 41.
"I kind of want to keep going for a bit," she said.
"When you're in the water the water doesn't know your age," she added.
The venue for the 2016 games will be announced in October next year. Phelps was scheduled to meet with Chicago community leaders later in the day to help provide support for the city's bid.
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(Agencies)
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美國脫口秀“名嘴”奧普拉?溫芙瑞于本周三邀請美國150多名奧運獎牌得主做客一個凱旋歡迎派對，一是慶祝奧運選手們凱旋歸來，二來是為美國申辦2016年奧運會動員造勢。
當天的派對在芝加哥密歇根湖邊的一個露天音樂會場舉行，當奧運選手們穿過走廊、走上舞臺，現場四千多名觀眾歡呼躍雀，盡情拋灑著紅、白、藍的彩色紙條。奧普拉主持的脫口秀節目共在140個國家播出，在國內，每周有4600萬觀眾觀看。
在節目結束時，奧普拉對運動員們說：“美國隊，你要讓我們站得更高。”她說她希望2016年運動員們能有機會“故地重游”，參加在芝加哥舉行的奧運會。芝加哥將與馬德里、里約熱內盧和東京角逐2016年夏季奧運會的舉辦權。
在上月的北京奧運會上打破紀錄、一舉奪得八金的游泳名將邁克爾?菲爾普斯說，盡管他還沉浸在勝利的喜悅中，但他“得回到馬里蘭”，看朋友和他的寵物犬。
“我想做的最重要的一件事就是發展游泳運動。”他說，他已將自己從（贊助商）Speedo泳衣公司獲得的100萬美元獎金全部用于創立一個慈善基金會，以促進游泳運動的發展。
這期節目將于本月8日播出，也是奧普拉脫口秀第23季的第一集。
另外一位泳壇名將、北京奧運會銀牌得主達拉?托雷斯說，盡管自己已是41歲“高齡”，但仍堅持在奧運賽場上。
她說：“我還是想繼續游下去。”
“泳池里的水又不知道你的年齡。”
2016年夏季奧運會的舉辦城市將于明年10月揭曉。菲爾普斯定于當天晚些時候與芝加哥的社區負責人見面，參加一個申奧活動。
（英語點津姍姍編輯）
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