Summer Olympics 2012 London

[singveld]

The greatest athlete the world has ever seen: Usain Bolt achieves historic Olympic sprint double with 200m win then celebrates by doing PRESS-UPS

Usain Bolt retains his Olympic 200m in a time of 19.32, making him the first man to win that event and the 100m race at two Olympics
Jamaican superstar came in fractionally behind his own world record as countrymen Yohan Blake gained silver and Warren Weir came third
Silenced doubters with a finger on his lips as he crossed the line before falling to the floor to do press-ups in an incredible display of strength

Usain Bolt won the men's 200m in emphatic style tonight, earning his title as the world's greatest ever sprinter.
The 25-year-old Jamaican powered home in 19.32 seconds, just a fraction outside the Olympic record of 19.30 - and he raised the roof on the Olympic Stadium by dropping to the track and celebrating by doing press-ups.
Yohan Blake and Warren Weir made it a Jamaica one-two-three. American Wallace Spearmon came fourth.
Having repeated his feat from Beijing, Bolt is the only man to have won both the 100m and 200m at two successive Olympics

Bolt was pushed all the way by Blake, his friend and training partner, who was tipped by many to outshine his mentor in London.

Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt and Warren Weir celebrate their phenomenal 1-2-3 for Jamaica
Bolt celebrated by kissing the track, hugging spectators, dropping and performing a set of press-ups and striking his lightning pose, before embracing compatriots Blake and Weir - who secured silver and bronze.
He then told the BBC: "This is what I wanted and I got it. I'm very proud of myself. I had a rough season, I came out here and I did what I had to do.

'We've been working hard all season. We pushed ourselves, we pushed each other and we're happy."
Asked if he could have had a world record, Bolt added: "I think it was possible...but I guess I wasn't fit enough. I was fast but I wasn't fit enough.
'I came off the corner, I could feel the strain on my back a little bit so I was trying to keep my form, but
I stopped running because I knew it wasn't going to be a world record. When I came off the corner I could feel it.
'It was hard. I really dedicated [myself] to my work, I know what London meant to me. I came here and I gave it my all and I'm proud of myself.
'I didn't get a world record - I really wanted to do it in the 200m - but I'm happy."
Blake said: 'Usain Bolt has been motivating me all season. Everything has been going good so far."
Third-placed Weir added: "It's a great honour to come here and do what the country wanted, to get the top three.
'The love in London is very, very good."

Bolt rewarded the crowd by striking his famous lightning bolt pose

Grinning: The double gold medal winner grabbed a photographer's camera and started taking snaps of the crowd
Bolt broke both 100m and 200m world records in Beijing.
He failed to better his record of 9.58 seconds in the 100m final, but predicted a fast time tonight.
After cruising to victory in last night's semi-final he said: 'There's a possibility (of a record), definitely.
'I can't say (for sure), but the track is fast. It's going to be a good race.'
Both Bolt and Blake qualified comfortably from yesterday's semi-finals.
Blake registered the fastest time from the two heats. Bolt had to settle for fifth after slowing down to a canter as he crossed the line, light years ahead of the rest of the field.
The two men are fierce rivals on the track. Off the track, they're friends and even training partners - Bolt acting as a mentor to the 20-year-old.
He's even given Blake a nickname: 'The beast.'

 

[Sarcastic]

Sweet revenge: Carli Lloyd leads U.S. women past Japan to win Olympic soccer gold and defend title

<cite class="byline vcard"><abbr title="2012-08-09T20:49:30Z">35 minutes ago</abbr></cite>

Carli Lloyd of the U.S. (sitting center) celebrates with her teammates after scoring against Japan. (Reuters)

LONDON – The United States gained sweet revenge for one of the most painful women's soccer defeats on Thursday, beating Japan 2-1 to take the Olympic Games gold medal. A pair of outstanding goals from midfielder Carli Lloyd was enough to ensure the Americans avenged their defeat to the same opponent on penalty kicks in last year's Women's World Cup final.

Lloyd missed the Americans' first penalty in the shootout on that fateful night in Frankfurt, Germany, but was the difference-maker here at Wembley Stadium, scoring with an opportunistic header after seven minutes then smashing home the second just after halftime. Yet even when Lloyd, who also scored the extra-time winner against Brazil in the 2008 Olympic final in Beijing, put the U.S. up 2-0, this clash was far from done.

​

It was a highly quality contest throughout, the kind you might expect from the two teams who are undoubtedly the finest in the women's game right now. In the end there was little to choose between them, but the nerve of the U.S., plus some small yet welcome morsels of fortune, got them over the line.

This was an Olympic title (America's third straight) that head coach Pia Sundhage's team started speaking about within minutes of letting a World Cup that was theirs for the taking slip through their grasp. It was seen as the only way to make up for that disappointment and redemption was duly completed.

Japan may be left to rue the slow start that left it with an uphill battle. With neither side fully into its rhythm, the Japanese defense was caught surprisingly off-guard. Tobin Heath made a strong run down the left side and fed the ball to Alex Morgan, whose floated cross was directed right toward her forward partner Abby Wambach.

But just as the ball lost a little momentum as it approached the tall striker, Lloyd dashed in and launched a powerful header into the net for a 1-0 lead. It as a wake-up call for Japan and goalkeeper Hope Solo soon found herself under pressure in the American goal.

At 16 minutes, Nahomi Kawasumi sent over a swirling cross from the left and Yuki Ogimi's header was pushed onto the crossbar by Solo. The rebound fell to Ogimi, who could only smash it well off target.

Japan was cursing the woodwork again midway through the period, as captain Aya Miyama's drive could not be reached by Solo and hit the bar.

​

If the Americans were a little fortunate to still be ahead going into the break, Lloyd's second goal was a timely boost to their confidence. Lloyd finished off a sparkling run with a fierce strike past the outstretched arms of Miho Fukumoto and the gold medal was surely wrapped up. Or so it seemed.

Japan did not become world champion by giving up and displayed impressive resilience. With 63 minutes gone, the U.S. could not recover from a mad scramble in its own penalty area and saw its cushion halved. Homare Sawa, the player of the tournament in the World Cup, was starting to stamp her authority on the game but it was Ogimi who got the goal for Japan to send nerves jangling for Sundhage's side.

And when substitute Mana Iwabuchi went clear on goal with eight minutes to go, it looked like another nail-biting period of extra time could be in the cards. Solo remained strong, though, pushing away a solid effort to retain the lead.

A crowd of 80,203 – a record for Olympic soccer – packed into Wembley, one of the sport's most iconic venues, on what was a tremendous night for the women's game regardless of the scoreline.

That would have been of little consolation to the Americans had they lost, but this is a team that has a habit of rising to a challenge of Olympic proportions. The final whistle sparked scenes of delirious celebration as those demons from 13 months ago were well and truly exorcised.

 

[singveld]

 

[singveld]

 

[singveld]

 

[singveld]

 

[singveld]

 

[singveld]

Russia’s Daria Dmitrieva has the early lead in rhythmic gymnastics qualifying.

 

[singveld]

Julie Zetlin of the United States competes in the Individual All-Around Gymnastics Rhythmic on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympics Games at Wembley Arena on August 9, 2012 in London

 

[singveld]

Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia performs with the ball during the Rhythmic Gymnastics qualification on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Wembley Arena.

Daria Dmitrieva of Russia performs with the hoop during the Rhythmic Gymnastics qualification on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Wembley Arena.

 

[singveld]

 

[Sarcastic]

 

[Sarcastic]

Belgium swimmer sent home from London Olympics

<cite class="byline vcard">The Associated Press – <abbr class="updated" title="2012-08-10T17:01:54Z">4 hours ago</abbr></cite>

AFP/Getty Images - Belgian swimmer Fanny Lecluyse poses after a press meeting in Mouscron on June 19, 2012. AFP PHOTO / BELGA / BENOIT DOPPAGNE *** Belgium out ***BENOIT DOPPAGNE/AFP/GettyImages

LONDON (AP) -- Belgium's Olympic team says it sent home a female swimmer from the London Games for "inappropriate behavior" before one of its cyclists was told to leave for appearing drunk in public.

The Belgian Olympic Committee says swimmer Fanny Lecluyse "was sent home before the end of the games after an incident of inappropriate behavior."

Belgian media reported that 20-year-old Lecluyse had returned to the athletes village appearing drunk at 3:30 a.m.

The team says Lecluyse left on Aug. 3. Two days earlier, she placed sixth in a 200-meter breaststroke heat won by Rebecca Soni of the United States.

Lecluyse's departure was confirmed after the Belgian team sent home cyclist Gijs van Hoecke. He was photographed looking intoxicated and unable to walk while leaving a London nightclub.

 

[Sarcastic]

IOC official: Jamaican sprinters should expect more drugs tests

<cite class="byline vcard">

By Vincent Fribault | Reuters – <abbr title="2012-08-11T20:47:17Z">1 hour 1 minute ago</abbr></cite>

FILE - This Sept. 4, 2011 file photo shows Jamaica's Usain Bolt celebrating after winning the men's 4x100 relay final, and setting a world record, at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea. Any talk of the Olympics has to start with the flashy Jamaican sprinter. His performance in Beijing four years ago was magical. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, FIle)

LONDON (Reuters) - Jamaican athletes, who have dominated the sprint events at the London Olympics should now expect more visits by drugs testers, former anti-doping chief Dick Pound said on Saturday.

Usain Bolt stormed to victory in both the 100 and 200 meters with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce snatching gold in the women's 100 as the Caribbean island consolidated its domination of the blue riband events.

"No, they are one of the groups that are hard to test, it is (hard) to get in and find them and so forth," former World Anti-Doping Agency chief Pound told Reuters Television when asked whether he was happy with the way Jamaica tested its athletes.

"I think they can expect, with the extraordinary results that they have had, that they will be on everybody's radar," said Pound, an International Olympic Committee member. Jamaica won a clean sweep in the men's 200 with Yohan Blake and Warren Weir winning silver and bronze behind Bolt.

Blake was also second to Bolt in the 100 and the duo also combined with Nesta Carter and Michael Frater to retain the 4x100 relay title in a world record time. It was Bolt's third gold for the second successive Games.

Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica also claimed bronze in the women's 100m behind Fraser-Pryce.

Pound said the IOC was still a long way away from winning the fight against doping with 11 athletes being expelled from the Games since the start of the Olympic period on July 16.
"I think it is too soon to say. I think we are gaining and getting better at science," said Pound, WADA's first president.

"We are starting to get better at smart testing. But there is a long way to go yet. In Churchillian terms, it is not the beginning of the end, but the end of the beginning." Victor Conte, convicted owner of the now-defunct BALCO laboratory that was at the centre of a global doping scandal, had said earlier this week that 60 percent of athletes at the Games were on drugs.

"He is probably more likely to know than we are. I hope it is not 60 per cent, but it is certainly a lot more than we are catching," Pound said. "The drug testing that will be done here is first class. I would not expect many cases at the Olympics because if you test positive here you fail not a drugs test but an IQ test."

The IOC will run more than 5,000 tests at the Games that end on Sunday. More than 100 athletes were also caught using banned substances in the months leading up to the Games following increased testing by national and international anti-doping agencies, designed to root out cheats before they arrived in London.

(Writing by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Greg Stutchbury)

 

[Leongsam]

Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia performs with the ball during the Rhythmic Gymnastics qualification on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Wembley Arena.

That's a sport???

They might as well add hip hop dancing and ballet to the Olympics.

 

[singveld]

That's a sport???

They might as well add hip hop dancing and ballet to the Olympics.

yes it is a sport, it is about elegant , beauty and perfection. After they retired from competition, they join cirque du soleil and thrill us.

 

[singveld]

Double crab: Spain's team compete in the team free routine final during the synchronised swimming competition

 

[singveld]

Dancing on water:As their glamourous costumes glistened in the water today, the Olympic synchronised swimmers made their sport look deceptively graceful from the poolside

 

[singveld]

Mid-flight: A synchronised swimmier representing Egypt flies through the air like a bird

 

[singveld]

Perfection: The team from China hold a pose in the pool. The Chinese won a silver medal earlier in the week and are hotly tipped to be amongst the medalists once again