Gymnastics ends with a bang

Gabby's gold in gymnastics all-around was exciting, but Aly Raisman really shined in this year, as well. She won bronze on the beam in a tie breaker, and then went on to win gold on a nearly perfect floor exercise, with the crowd clapping along with her music, as usual. Aly was the one who edged out Jordyn Wieber for the all-around final, and while everyone was upset that Jordyn didn't get a chance to compete for that title, Aly proved herself the better gymnast this year. Way to go Aly!

Men's gymnastics high bar is so fun to watch! This year the gold medal went to Zonderland of the Netherlands, the first Dutch man to win a medal in gymnastics. His routine was AMAZING--he had a combo of 3 releases in a row, contributing to the most difficult piece of gymnastics in the entire games. Plus, he has a rockin' 70s haircut. You can watch his routine here.
_________________________________________________________

I don't care that much about equestrian, but the jumping is kinda fun to watch, and I got to root for an Irish guy named Cian O'Connor. He was tied for silver with Gerco Schroder from the Netherlands, so they had a jump-off. It was neat to see these two countries have a go, 'cause the Netherlands is usually a Winter Olympics country, and Ireland doesn't win many medals in general. O'Connor went second, and his time was much better than Schroder's--it looked like he had it won... until he botched the very last jump. It was close, but O'Connor got the bronze, Ireland's first (and probably only) medal of these games. Yay Ireland!

The two American beach volleyball teams played each other for gold, and Misty May/Kerry Walsh won. No surprise there. They've never lost a single set in 3 Olympics. That's just... wow. You can tell in their interviews that they're such great friends. That's probably one reason why they're such an amazing team--they know each other well enough to predict each others' moves, and they trust each other well enough to know that their backs are covered. That's the very definition of teamwork.

So far, we've won 20 medals in track and field. That's twice as many as the 9 that second place Russia has. We always dominate in track and field, and it should give us the edge over China for the overall medal count. Right now, we're up by 4, though China has 2 more golds. I'm hoping we get gold and silver in the decathlon--our two American athletes are at the top after day 1.

Getting into the Olympic spirit

I am having so much fun watching the ups and downs of world class competition! American Nathan Adrian winning the gold in the 100m freestyle by 1/100th of a second was so exciting! And the women pulled through again with another gold in the 4x200m free relay. But watching gymnasts Danell Leyva and and John Orozco compete in the men's all-around was absolutely engrossing. They both had a chance to medal, but they each screwed up pretty bad on the pommel horse, repeating their mistakes from the team competition. John's score was bad enough to take him out of the running, but Danell did well enough on his other events to still have a chance... and he did it! He came away with bronze! Such an impressive comeback--it must have had something to do with that lucky towel he carries around with him everywhere. Gymnastics sure has been all about bouncing back this year!
_________________________________________________________

Kayla Harrison became the first American ever to win a gold medal in judo, and if that's not impressive enough for you, she's a former victim of sexual abuse. When she was 16, she confessed that her coach had been abusing her for years, and her mother immediately pressed charges. They moved, found a new training group to help her recover emotionally and psychologically, and now she's an Olympic champion. In an article from TIME magazine, Kayla says, "This is proof that you're only a victim if you allow yourself to be. Nothing can stop you." She is definitely a strong woman worth looking up to.

Every time Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman do their gymnastics floor exercises, the crowd claps with the music, and tonight they really put on a show. As their last routine, it was the perfect way to end the night that would win them the gold and bronze, respectively. We've won gold in the women's all-around for the last 3 Olympics, which means the Russians are no longer the obvious favorites in the sport. We've never had an African American winner, though, so Gabby's definitely in the history books for that.

Rebecca Soni also won gold in the 200m breaststroke with a world record, becoming the first woman to win this event in back-to-back Olympics. Our women sure have set a lot of standards this year--I wonder if that correlates with the fact that the US has more female than male athletes at the Olympics for the first time ever...

Awe-inspiring team efforts for the US

I am sooooo glad our women's gymnastics team won the gold! It was so heartbreaking that Jordyn Wieber didn't make it to the individual all-round finals--her score was 4th out of everyone behind 2 teammates and a Russian, but only the top two athletes from each country are allowed to compete in that event. So sad! But she did her best to put it behind her to help the team win gold. Now THAT is a great competitor! So many talented athletes have a really hard time coming back from disappointment like that, but Jordyn did it. What a great team! Every single routine was great, and a few, like Jordyn's own floor routine and McKayla Maroney's vault, were basically flawless. It's always fun to watch an entire team succeed together.

The US swim team is doing awesome this year, too! Nearly every single swimmer we have has won a medal, including Allison Schmitt's exciting gold tonight in the 200m freestyle. The women, in particular have been really impressive. Phelps and the men have been great, too, but when you're expected to win and you get silver, it feels like a loss. Any medal at all is a big achievement, but there is definitely a difference between "winning" bronze and "losing" gold. Phelps "lost" gold tonight in the 200m butterfly because he had some iffy turns and a bad finish, but he did make history by becoming the most decorated Olympian EVER with his 19th medal (a gold) from the 4x200m freestyle relay. Very cool!

Missy Franklin is on a roll!

Individual diving is pretty amazing, but synchronized diving is double the awesome. Not only are the dives cool-looking and super difficult, two people have to do the exact same thing at the exact same time! And the US did great, too! The women's team won silver and the men's team, bronze. So neat!

The American men really messed up the team gymnastics competition, but the Brits pulled through to medal for the first time in a hundred years with a bronze. Originally, Britian had silver, Ukraine had bronze, and Japan got fourth, but Japan disputed a score and was moved up to second, bumping Ukraine off the medal stand. You can't blame a coach for looking out for his team, but I, for one, thought the Japanese guy's score was fair--his pommel horse dismount looked pretty terrible to me. I feel sorry for the Ukraine.

US swimmer Missy Franklin (17 years old) has a really great story. She and her family decided to stay in Colorado to train instead of moving to a bigger swimming state (like California), and they have turned down numerous sponsorships and prize money offers so she could stay eligible to swim with her high school team. I think that's really cool--that her parents are allowing her to stay a normal kid as much as possible, not pushing her talent to the breaking point or weighing down her shoulders with high-stakes pressure. As a result, swimming has remained a fun activity for her instead of an obligation and a job. That's the way it should be done... and it has worked out splendid for Missy! In addition to the bronze she got with the US team in the 4x100m freestyle, she won GOLD in the 100m backstroke 14 minutes after swimming in a heat for the 200m freestyle. Looks like I have a new favorite swimmer.

The 2012 games have begun

I loved London's Opening Ceremonies. It really showed off how much great stuff Britain has produced for the world over the centuries. The progression of time was a cool framework for the show, starting out with quaint agrarian life (reminiscent of Hobbiton), transitioning to the Industrial Revolution (towering silos coming out of the ground reminded me of the intro to "Game of Thrones"), and then on to the digital age (feature texting and modern music). The musical ride from the 50s to today was very neat and well-done. I'm glad they saved Pink Floyed for the fireworks finale--so fitting!

The short film featuring the Queen and James Bond (Daniel Craig) getting into a helicopter was fun, then seeing "them" jump out of it into the stadium right before Her Majesty's declaration of opening the games was very clever! Roan Atkinson "playing" the Chariots of Fire theme was HILARIOUS! I could not stop laughing through that entire song. I also greatly enjoyed watching top-hatted Kenneth Branagh wander around hordes of people whilst chomping on a cigar and posing with fists on hips.

The idea of having one copper pedal for each country come together to form one Olympic flame was ingenious. And Paul McCartney was a great closer, leading the crowd in singing "Hey Jude." My favorite part, however, was the children's literature segment. JK Rowling read a passage from Peter Pan, kids jumped and flipped on movable beds, costumed nightmare creatures danced around sleeping children, and a giant Voldemort was defeated by many Mary Poppinses!

Danny Boyle's production turned out to be incredibly creative, visually interesting, and intensely entertaining. China's awesome ceremony in Beijing was impressively big, but I liked this one better. I do hope to see the good Doctor somewhere in the closing ceremonies, though.
_________________________________________________________

I noticed that some of the cyclers in the men's road race were chatting it up during the first part of their ride, when everyone was still in a big clump. What a great example of the Olympic spirit! Seeing athletes from different countries being friendly and nice to each other, especially during competition, is one of the main reasons why I love to watch them. It's always see great sportsmanship at the Olympic level--makes me wish it was more common in US pro and college sports. Another thing I enjoy: seeing older athletes and underdogs win! 38-year-old Vinokourov of Kazakhstan surprised everyone and took home the gold for this race.

There was an Irishman named Kieran Behan competing in men's gymnastics with an inspiring backstory. He's had quite a few bad injuries that had doctors thinking he wouldn't walk again, let alone compete in the Olympics! But he recovered from them all to become the second man from Ireland ever to qualify for the Games. He didn't get to the finals, but he sure had the time of his life. How cool is that?

Ryan Lochte won the gold by a longshot in the men's 400 IM (individual medley). His extra hard work over the last four years has really paid off, and as he said, he's "ready to rock" for the other events. Michael Phelps got 4th. Just goes to show that busting one's ass can really make a difference.

Shawn and Nastia rule!

Shawn got her gold on beam, and Nastia the silver. Both of their routines were basically perfect except for a small step on Shawn's landing and a small hop on Nastia's. I'm really glad they were both able to get golds.

I'm also glad that Jonathan Horton got silver on high bar. :)

Not so glad: I felt so sorry for the two Americans runners who lost their golds in today. In the women's 200m, Sanya Richards had an awesome first 100, but then her leg cramped up and was passed by British runner Christine Ohuruogu and a Jamaican runner. Later, in the 100m hurdles, Lolo Jones was way ahead until she hit the 9th hurdle and ended up 7th. Dawn Harper pulled ahead to win gold, but Lolo's loss was quite a blow. After crossing the finish line, she dropped to her knees and buried her face in her hands. It was so sad. Times like these are always a part of the Olympics, but they're never easy to watch.

I watched some Tae Kwon Do online. I love it when they do spinning kicks. I hope I'm able to catch most of the finals.

BMX racing is really exciting! Lots of crashes. I'm glad they added that sport to the Olympics.

Screwy gymnastics scoring, vol. 2

Well, Nastia Liukin had a tying score with a Chinese gymnast for the gold in the uneven bars, but she ended up getting second because of a stupid tie-breaking rule. Other sports just give 2 golds if there's a tie. Why not gymnastics? That just doesn't make sense! Nastia got cheated out of a gold because gymnasts can't tie? That's completely ridiculous! I think Nastia's looked better, anyway. The judges have been scoring weirdly throughout the competition, and the new scoring system is pretty dumb. A perfect 10 is impossible now. They should change it back.

On a brighter note, American Jenn Stuczynski won silver in pole vault. Gold went to Russian Yelena Isinbayeva, who broke her world record and is really fun to watch. Pole vaulters in general seem to be really cool people. The male winner in Athens was pretty hilarious, dancing on the landing mat.

We also won gold in discus. Woo! Stephanie Brown Trafton.

Synchronized swimming is pretty fascinating. I had never watched a competition of it before last night, and it was fun to watch. It's set up kinda like figure skating. The teams have to do a technical routine with requirements and and then they have a free routine. Their suits match the show music, and their moves are built around that music. It's like they're dancing in the water, but they have to hold their breath most of the time while their legs are kicking around in the air. They're even judged on presentation and overall impression as well as execution and difficulty. It's an athletic performance.

Jamaican me crazy!

The Jamaican women swept the 100m dash! Woo! I like them. Sure, I was rooting for Lauren Williams, but the Jamaicans deserved their medals. Shelly-Ann Fraser, the winner, kept jumping around for joy after crossing the finish line. It was funny. That, along with Usain Bolt winning the men's event so easily, is one reason why Jamaica rocks.

33-year-old Oksana Chusovina won silver in the women's vault. She's amazing. Alicia Sacramone probably should have won bronze, but a Chinese girl barely beat her. Bela Caroli was getting really worked up about it. The Chinese girl had a huge step on her second vault and he thought Alicia got totally ripped off. :(

Shawn and Nastia looked like they were going to repeat 1, 2 in the floor exercise, but then Romanian Sandra Izbasa, the last to go, did an amazing routine to win it. That was kinda sad, but cool for Sandra. Note: I really don't get bored of watching Shawn's routine, and she is so cute!

On the men's side, we didn't get any medals. Artemev's pommel horse routine was really exciting and extra hard, so it stung more than usual when he fell off. :( The British guy, Louis Smith, however, got a medal, the first for the UK since 1928.

I got to watch some Badminton last night. It is really quite exciting! When Lin Dan won gold for China, he jumped up and fell down, he was so excited. He then threw his racket and both shoes into the crowd. Lol.

The US women's eights rowing team won gold for the first time in a couple decades! Woo!

"I was born in the back seat of a Greyhound bus rollin' down highway 41."

I rode on a Greyhound bus Wednesday for the first time ever to see Dave Matthews Band in OKC (which was a great concert), and it was pretty interesting. It kinda reminded me of a band trip, riding in a charter bus, but this time I didn't know any of the passengers. The stations are kinda like mini airports, and they were pretty nice--not really what I was expecting. My favorite part about it, though, was that the television inside the OKC station was playing Olympics coverage, so waiting for the bus was not a drag at all.

None of our men won medals in the gymnastics all-around, but I was glad to see the Chinese guy win. I like him. Our girls, on the other hand, were amazing. Nastia Liukin won gold, Shawn Johnson silver. I almost teared up when Nastia and her dad, who's also her coach and who won gold for Russia way back when, hugged and cried together.

And then, of course, Phelps gets another gold. Tomorrow's 100m Butterfly race will be more interesting than what we've seen lately because he's not particularly favored to win. We'll see. (Special note: NBC had Blue Man Group music playing on a Phelps special about his perfect swimmer physical features.)

I'm really glad that American James Blake won against Roger Federer in Tennis. Now that is an accomplishment, especially after losing to him 8 times already in the past. I really hope he goes on the win the gold.

I still have yet to see any Archery, and I'd like to catch some badminton at some point. But I did get to see a bit of table tennis. It was INTENSE. The most intense ping pong I've ever seen.

Phelps and Costas continuing to meet expectations...

Phelps at 11 career golds...

Bob Costas continues to be corny and somewhat athletically illiterate while anchoring the coverage...

The Women's Gymnastics team looked for a while like they might get gold, but after Alicia Sacramone botched her beam routine, she wasn't able to put it past her and ended up having a bad floor routine, but they still came away with silver. I really like Shawn Johnson's floor routine--she uses music from August Rush.

I've also noticed a lot of interesting music choices throughout NBC's coverage. I keep hearing soundtracks being used on stories about athletes, including National Treasure and Lemony Snicket's a Series of Unfortunate Events. Pirates of the Caribbean music was fittingly used when they talked about the fencing medal sweep. I also randomly noticed "Ghostbusters" playing in the background during a beach volleyball match.

Shaky day for the gymnasts

The US Men's Gymnastics team barely squeaked by with a bronze medal. We really were no match for China, but for a while it looked like we would get silver. Jonathan Horton had a great day, sticking all of his landings, even after his super cool and super hard high bar dismount. Justin Spring's high bar routine was even more fun to watch. He was all over the place, with multiple releases and one-handed swings. I think he's my favorite team member. But then, Joey Hagerty had a bad floor routine and our first two pommel horse guys had trouble. Artemev, however, stepped in and kept us ahead of the Germans with a great routine. The most interesting part of that, though, was that he hadn't done anything the whole day and then had to go very last. Talk about pressure, mate.

Tonight was Aaron Peirsol's medal debut. I really like him. He's really laid back--doesn't even shave before prelim races--but he still gets it done when it really matters. Even in this race he had a not-too-great start, and then pulled ahead the last 25 meters. He's a cool dude. He's like the Bode Miller of swimming.

Phelps got his third gold in the 200 freestyle. He makes it looks so easy--he was a body length ahead for the whole second half of the race. It's no wonder he's interviewed so often, but the interviewers always ask him the same questions. "How did you do it?" "What were you thinking?" "How did you pull through?" He usually manages to give pretty interesting answers, though. I guess he's just used to it by now.

I can't go without mentioning any females... Natalie Coughlin won gold in the 100m backstroke, which was extra cool 'cause she was the first to ever defend the title, and subsequently the first to win it twice.

Take that, France!

The US 4x100m freestyle swim team had an AMAZING race against France. The French team had been talking some trash before the race about us, but we ended up beating them by 8/10 of a second! Jason Lezak's last leg was the fastest relay split ever--we were almost a full body legth behind and he caught up right at the end! I watched it with my dad, grandparents, aunt, and uncle and we all cheered when it happened. The faces on Phelps and the other teammates were PRICELESS! It was hilarious. NBC showed the replay a million times and it never got old. Woohoo!

That was the most exciting part of the day, but it was also nice to see the US basketball team beat China. It looks like "The Redeem Team" was named accurately.

I can't say as much for the Women's Gymnastics team, though. There was a lot of stepping out of bounds, falling off of bars, and landing badly. Shawn Johnson was the only girl who never made any big mistakes. It was cool to see them huddle up after it was all over, though. They were encouraging each other, saying that they got through it, it's only prelims, they can do better in the finals. It reminded me a lot of what we used to do before and after marching band performances in high school. They certainly had an off day, but they all have great attitudes and I think they'll be able to bounce back.

Another interesting event was the Women's Cycling Road Race. It started raining midway through the race and those skinny tires plus watery roads is not a good combo. A Korean cycler slipped and took down a bunch of others with her. I'm usually not that into cycling, but the increased difficulty of this race made it quite interesting, and regardless of how the majority of the race goes, the end is always exciting.

An interesting side note: there is apparently a Starbucks at the Great Wall of China. Lol.

Starting off on the right track.

Not surprisingly, Michael Phelps won his first medal. He's never been beating in the 400m Individual Medley before, so why should he now? I really hope he wins gold in his 7 remaining events, giving him the record for the most golds won in a single Olympics. Michael just seems like a really nice guy, and I love his mom! NBC showed footage of her going crazy and cheering him on for his last 100 meters. Quite entertaining. Another thing I found amusing was that they showed all the photographers there. Tons of guys packed along the sidelines, all with HUMONGOUS lenses on their cameras.

Dara Torres has an interesting story. She's a 41-year-old swimmer, and this is her 5th Olympics! She's an old woman in athlete years, the oldest Olympic swimmer ever, in fact. That doesn't mean she's not good, though! In the 400m freestyle relay she had the fastest split time of anyone.

We ended up sweeping all three medals in Women's Fencing. That was cool. Those matches go by so fast! I can't say I was surprised to learn that all three girls are from Ivy League schools. :P Anyway, it was the first time any country has swept the event, and the US is usually well-known for fencing, so that's an accomplishment. Also, Zagunis, who won gold, won it last time, as well.

I also watched some Men's Gymnastics. Major feats of strength those events are. The most interesting thing about it to me, though, is comparing the different styles of different countries. China's team is better than the US team in terms of consistancy, but their routines are safer. The US has athletes that go for more difficult moves for high points, but they aren't a sure thing. Alexander Artemev, for example, has a pommel horse routine that was crazy awesome, WAY more interesting than anything the Chinese or Japanese did, but he's hit and miss on whether he can pull it off.