Tag Archives: 2012 Summer Olympics Canada
Aly Raisman Wins Olympic Gold 2012
U.S. captain matched Gabby Douglas in gold medals, winning the title on floor exercise Tuesday. Add in the bronze on balance beam from earlier in the day, and she becomes the most decorated of the Fierce Five.
Good thing Raisman had such a big day because the rest of the Americans came up empty-handed. Douglas had another rough day, finishing seventh on balance beam after a fall. World champion Jordyn Wieber, voted most likely to leave the Olympics with the biggest haul, was seventh on floor and finishes without any individual medals.
Danell Leyva and Jonathan Horton were fifth and sixth, respectively, on high bar, leaving the U.S. men with only Leyva’s all-around bronze.
“I’m so happy, going home with two Olympic gold medals and a couple of titles under my belt,” Douglas said. “I’m so happy for Aly, she deserves to be up on that podium. She had a great beam routine and I’m so proud of her.”
Raisman may not have Douglas’ bubbly personality or Wieber’s resume but she is prized her for her steadiness, and that consistency paid off big in London.
Perhaps energized by her surprise bronze on beam, Raisman’s floor routine had an extra spark. Her tumbling passes were some of the most difficult, and she got such great height on them you could have parked a double-decker bus beneath her. Her landings were not only secure, one was so powerful it practically shook the floor.
Coach Mihai Brestyan was hopping up and down and pumping his fist as she finished, and even Raisman was impressed with herself, mouthing “wow” after she saluted the judges. When her score, a 15.6, was posted, teammate McKayla Maroney yelled “whoa!” so loudly from the stands it could be heard across the arena.
There were still five gymnasts to go, but none came close. When reigning world champion Sandra Izbasa landed her final tumbling run on her head, Raisman let herself exhale. And smile.
Catalina Ponor, the 2004 champion on floor, won the silver. Aliya Mustafina of Russia got the bronze, her fourth medal of the Olympics.
Missy Franklin Sets World Record, Wins Gold Medal
American teenager Missy Franklin set a world record in the 200 backstroke Friday for her third gold and fourth medal overall at the London Olympics.
Franklin clocked 2 minutes, 4.06 seconds, 0.75 quicker than the mark set by Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe at the 2009 world championships in Rome in a now-banned bodysuit.
It was the seventh world record of the games.
Anastasia Zueva of Russia touched in 2:05.92 to take the silver medal and Elizabeth Beisel of the United States finished in 2:06.55 to take bronze.
Katie Ledecky Wins Gold
15-year-old Katie Ledecky won the 800-meter freestyle at the London Olympics on Friday.
The youngest member of the U.S. swim team narrowly missed a world record in the grueling race, falling off pace on the last lap and finishing in 8 minutes, 14.63 seconds.
Mireia Belmonte Garcia of Spain touched in 8:18.76 to take the silver medal and defending champion Rebecca Adlington of host Britain finished in 8:20.32 for bronze.
Phelps vs. Lochte coming up in the Olympic pool as stars face off in 200 IM
London Olympics went to Lochte in a runaway on the opening night of the swimming competition. This one figures to be a lot closer.
The American stars compete against each other for the last time in the 200-meter individual medley on Thursday night. Lochte qualified fastest in 1 minute, 56.13 seconds. Phelps was 98-hundredths of a second back in third.
“We love racing against each other,” said Phelps, who plans to retire after the games. “Neither one of us likes to lose. I like to say we bring out the best in one another.”
In between them again is Laszlo Cseh of Hungary. He’s been the perennial also-ran in the last two Olympics, taking bronze behind Phelps at the 2004 Athens Games and silver four years ago in Beijing when Phelps won and Lochte was third.
Phelps could accomplish one more bit of history on Day 6 at the pool. A victory would make him the first male swimmer to win an individual event in three consecutive Olympics. Japanese star Kosuke Kitajima failed to defend either of his titles in the 100 or 200 breaststrokes, leaving Phelps a chance to accomplish the feat.
He missed on his first two tries at a threepeat, finishing fourth in the 400 IM (Lochte won) and second in the 200 butterfly.
Lochte has a busy schedule on what could be a big night for the U.S. He’ll try to defend his title in the 200 backstroke final, with teammate Tyler Clary pressuring him as the fastest qualifier. Then a short time later, Lochte returns for the 200 IM final.
The night wraps up with a new champion being crowned in the women’s 100 freestyle final, an all-out sprint to the wall featuring Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands and American teenager Missy Franklin.
Kromowidjojo set an Olympic record of 53.05 seconds in the semifinals. Melanie Schlanger of Australia was second-quickest at 53.38 and Franklin was third in 53.59. Defending champion Britta Steffen of Germany failed to make the final.
The U.S. team continued its strong showing with victories by Nathan Adrian in the 100 free and the team of Franklin, Dana Vollmer, Shannon Vreeland and Allison Schmitt in the 4×200 free relay on Wednesday.
Adrian won a thrilling race that came down to the end. He got to the wall one-hundredth of a second ahead of James “The Missile” Magnussen of Australia, becoming the first American to win the 100 free since Matt Biondi at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Adrian hit the wall in 47.52 to Magnussen’s 47.53. Brent Hayden of Canada took the bronze in 47.80, his country’s first-ever medal in the event.
“This guy is an incredible closer. I knew that,” Adrian said of Magnussen. “I knew it was going to take a lot more than what I’d ever done before to be able to hang with him those last 5 meters.”
London Olympics 2012 U.S. Women’s Gymnastics Wins Team Gold Medal
The U.S. women captured the gold medal with an overall score of 183.596. Russia scored a 178.530 to take the silver and Romania won the bronze with a score of 176.414.
The 2012 U.S. women’s gymnastics team is composed of Jordyn Wieber, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, Kyla Ross and McKayla Maroney. According to the Olympic format, each team selects three gymnasts for each of the four apparatuses in the final — balance beam, uneven bars, vault and floor.
The 16-year-old Douglas performed in each of the rotations while Wieber was called on for the floor, vault and uneven bars. Raisman worked the floor and the beam, with Ross performing on the beam and the uneven bars. Maroney was the only U.S. gymnast with just one event but no one on the team registered a score higher than her 16.233 on vault. That score was the highest of all competitors in the team final.
Russia was the primary challenger for the U.S. team in middle stages of the competition but completely fell apart during the floor routine, with two gymnasts falling during their routines. After Russia’s mistakes, the U.S. team headed to the floor knowing three solid performances would likely win them the gold. Gabby Douglas, Jordyn Wieber and Aly Raisman delivered impressive floor routines to clinch the first team gold for the U.S. since the “Magnificent Seven” won in 1996.
Michael Phelps wins record 19th medal
Michael Phelps won his 19th Olympic medal, as we all knew he would, surpassing Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina as the most decorated Olympian of all-time.
But it was not in the way we might have expected. Already, there had been a fourth place finish and a second. Then, at the Aquatics Centre Tuesday, he came second again, in the 200-meter butterfly, before (at last) finishing first as anchor of the 4×200 freestyle relay.
Michael Phelps swimming the anchor leg, the United States won gold in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. France won silver with China taking bronze. This is the 19th medal of Phelps’ career, making him the most decorated Olympian of all time.
“I started smiling with about 20 meters to go,” Phelps said after the win, via Nicole Auerback of USA Today. “That’s the first time I’ve ever done that.”
Handed a sizable lead for the anchor of the 4×200, Phelps had the luxury of enjoying the trip. Coming off disappointing results in the 4×100-meter relay and the 200-meter freestyle, Ryan Lochte delivered a powerful performance in the first leg, handing Conor Dwyer a lead. Although the gap was closed on Dwyer, he built it back up before Ricky Berens hit the water. The lead continued to grow and Phelps never let the competitors get close.
London Olympics 2012 – Marianne Vos Wins Gold In Women’s Road Race
Olympic women’s road race Sunday in a rain-drenched sprint. Britain’s Elizabeth Armitstead took the silver, the home country’s first medal of the London Games.
Vos, the former world champion, made a daring move past Russia’s Olga Zabelinskaya to emerge from the three-rider breakaway. She powered past a small group of fans waving the Dutch flag, then raised her arms in triumph as she crossed the finish line.
Zabelinskaya won the bronze medal after a frantic finish through a driving rain that was reminiscent of four years ago in Beijing, when Britain’s Nicole Cook pulled away late to win the gold medal.
Nobody could blame Vos for the scream she let loose across the finish line.
The Dutch rider, who won track cycling gold in the points race at the Beijing Olympics, had grown accustomed to finishing just off the top step in major races. Vos has won five straight silvers at the world championships, and had never stood on the podium in an Olympic road race.
Tom Jones Olympics Performance Cancelled After Singer Contracts Bronchitis
The 72-year-old Welsh crooner had been due to entertain tens of thousands of people at the outdoor concert in Hyde Park on Saturday. He was replaced by British singer Will Young.
Jones tweeted “sorry to all,” adding that doctors had ordered him to cancel gigs scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
He later added: “Thanks for all the lovely messages, I don’t know if everyone’s understanding and support is making me feel better or worse! You’re the best!”
The concert was part of the BT London Live series that is offering fans without Olympic tickets an opportunity to listen to music and watch sports on big screens.
Ryan Lochte Wins Gold At London Olympics Swimming 2012
Ryan Lochte strolled the deck of the Olympic Aquatics Centre wearing diamonds in his mouth and lime-green sneakers on the feet that powered him through the water faster than anyone else. Beaming, he chomped playfully on his gold medal while Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” blared throughout the massive arena.
Michael Phelps?
He was nowhere to be found.
Not during the race.
Not when it came time to hand out the medals.
On a stunner of an opening night at the pool in London, Phelps was routed by his American rival in the 400-meter individual medley, losing to Lochte by more than 4 seconds Saturday. That’s not all: The winningest Olympian ever didn’t win any medal at all, the first time that’s happened in a race of this magnitude since he was a 15-year-old kid competing in just one event at the Sydney Games, a dozen years ago.
The biggest thing now is to try to look forward. I have a bunch of other races, and hopefully we can finish a lot better than how we started.”
China had a big night, claiming a couple of gold medals.
Sixteen-year-old Ye Shiwen set a world record in the women’s 400 individual medley – only the third mark to fall since high-tech bodysuits were banned at the end of 2009. She won in 4:28.43, breaking the mark of 4:29.45 by Australia’s Stephanie Rice at the 2008 Beijing Games. American Elizabeth Beisel took silver and China’s Li Xuanxu grabbed the bronze.
Sun Yang flirted with a world record in the men’s 400 freestyle. He took gold in 3:40.14, just off the mark of 3:40.07 by Germany’s Paul Biedermann in a rubberized suit three years ago. When it was done, Sun propped himself on the lane rope, pumping his fist and splashing the water.
Olympic Swimming 2012 Michael Phelps, Park Tae-hwan, Paul Biedermann Among (Bad) Swim Surprises
400-meter individual medley on the opening day of Olympic swimming Saturday, squeaking into the final by seven-hundredths of a second.
“That one didn’t feel too good,” he said.
Phelps wasn’t the only surprise of the morning at the Aquatics Centre, where Queen Elizabeth appeared briefly.
Olympic champion Park Tae-hwan of South Korea won his 400 freestyle heat, but was disqualified for a false start. Paul Biedermann of Germany, the world record holder in the event, failed to make the final.
“That’s the Olympics,” said Canadian Ryan Cochrane, who barely made the 400 free final. “It’s always a surprise, every single heat. You just have to focus on your own race.”
Phelps, the two-time defending Olympic champion, won his 400 IM preliminary heat in 4 minutes, 13.33 seconds with a time that was well off his world record of 4:03.84 set four years ago in Beijing, when Phelps won a record eight gold medals.
