Phelps, 'Redeem Team', highlight day 3
8/10/2008 BEIJING The U.S. team took the court against Venezuela with heavy hearts
and a fill-in coach, as Hugh McCutcheon left to be with his wife
following an attack at a Beijing tourist site that killed her
father and critically wounded her mother.
The Americans huddled, arms linked, then bowed their heads for a
moment of silence for Todd and Barbara Bachman, McCutcheon's
in-laws and the parents of Elisabeth "Wiz" Bachman, a member of
the 2004 U.S. Olympic team.
The men then went out and won their first two games. To claim
the match, all they had to do was win one of the next three.
It took all three, but they got it.
"We talked about how the best thing we could do was try to play
volleyball," team captain Tom Hoff said.
Sunday in Beijing was filled with rain, toying with the tennis
schedule and making cycling's road race quite treacherous. Just ask
the South Korean who wound up in a roadside ditch.
Unlike Athens, the pool here is indoors, at the spectacular
Water Cube. And inside that is the spectacular Phelps.
In his first two swims of this meet, he set an Olympic record in
prelims, then set the world record in his first final, the
400-meter individual medley. But the only thing that went wrong was
the national anthem cutting off early during the medal ceremony.
Odds are, he'll give DJs plenty more chances to get it right.
With 21 medals decided through Sunday night, the Americans and
Chinese are pulling away from the pack in the medal count. They're
not, however, separating from each other.
Both have eight medals, but give China the advantage because six
are gold - and none are bronze. The Americans have two gold, two
silver and four bronze.
---
Swimming
Phelps proved he's mortal by posting only the fourth-fastest
time in the preliminaries of the 200-meter freestyle. It was a
tactical move to save his strength, not an indication of being
sapped from his incredible show nine hours earlier. He'll swim the
200 freestyle semifinal Monday morning, along with the 400
freestyle relay.
His relay squad will have a tough act to follow: The prelim crew
set a world record Sunday night.
In the 400 IM, Phelps was supposed to have tough competition
from teammate Ryan Lochte. But he also had secret motivation: He
told his coach, Bob Bowman, that he wanted this to be the last time
he did this event.
"He said I have to end on a record," Phelps said. "In my
opinion, that was my last one."
Torres, competing in her fifth Olympics, was given the anchor
leg on the 400-freestyle relay. She dove in second and touched the
wall second, fending off Australia but unable to make much of a
move on the Netherlands despite posting the second-fastest split
time in the race.
"I'm hoping that my age paves the way for other athletes who
maybe think they're too old to do something," said Torres, who won
her 10th medal, her first since 2000. She started her collection
back in 1984.
Katie Hoff finished third in the 400 IM, losing the race - and
her world record - to Australia's Stephanie Rice. Elizabeth Beisel,
the 15-year-old American who finished first in qualifying, was
fourth.
"I can't really be mad," said Hoff, who plans to match Phelps
by swimming five individual events in Beijing. "I was only like a
half-second off my best time, so I'm happy to get my first medal of
the Olympics."
In the men's 400-meter freestyle, reigning world champion Park
Tae-hwan of South Korea won the gold, Zhang Lin of China took
silver and Jensen was third; at least Jensen can take solace in
setting a U.S. record, breaking the mark he set in qualifying the
night before. Favored Aussie Grant Hackett of Australia wilted from
first to sixth.
The Dutch won the 400 free relay in Olympic-record time.
---
Women's gymnastics
China was not up to its usual standards. Neither were the
Americans. Then again, it was only qualifying. The finals Wednesday
surely will be different.
The U.S. squad was limited because Samantha Peszek sprained her
left ankle in warm-ups. That left them with only four competitors
on floor, vault and balance beam, meaning every score had to count.
World champion Shawn Johnson dazzled on the balance beam but the
overall effort left something to be desired. Chellsie Memmel fell
from the uneven bars and Nastia Liukin fell on the landing in her
specialty, the uneven bars.
"We got the nerves out and the mistakes out," Johnson said.
China won the first subdivision, although most of the passion
came from the audience. Their coach said their performance "was
about 70 percent" of what it could be, although it was still good
enough for the top score.
---
Men's basketball
Playing before an adoring home crowd and a television audience
that might have been the largest ever for any sporting event, Yao
Ming thrilled 'em all by drilling a 3-pointer from the top of the
key for the very first basket against the Americans. China hung
tough for a while, too, but the high-flying, hard-dunking "Redeem
Team" was just too talented.
Dwyane Wade was 7-of-7 and scored 19 points, and LeBron James
had 18 in a 101-70 victory. The U.S. squad made 21 of its first 25
shots inside the arc, nearly all right around the rim, but they
weren't so hot from long distance - not that it mattered this time.
Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola and defending Olympic champion
Argentina lost their opener, going down 78-75 to Lithuania when
Denver Nuggets forward Linas Kleiza made a 3-pointer with 2.1
seconds left.
Another NBA player to lose was Andrew Bogut. His 10 points
weren't enough for Australia in a 97-82 loss to Croatia.
Dirk Nowitzki was 3-of-3 on 3-pointers and scored 23 points, and
Chris Kaman topped him with 24, leading Germany to a 95-66 victory
over Angola.
Pau Gasol scored 11 points and Rudy Fernandez had 16 as Spain
beat Greece 81-66 in a rematch of the 2006 world championship
finals.
In the tournament's opener, former Bucknell standout J.R. Holden
scored 19 points and Andrei Kirilenko added 15 to lead European
champion Russia past Iran 71-49.
---
Tennis
Ana Ivanovic gave away her No. 1 seed at the Olympics,
withdrawing because of inflammation in her right thumb that has
bothered her for several weeks. Her decision was announced after
play was called for the day with only nine of 45 scheduled matches
completed.
Ivanovic decided to pull out after trying to practice on the eve
of her opening match.
"It's one of the hardest moments in my career," the Serb said.
"I'm very, very disappointed."
Among the few players to complete victories was James Blake, at
No. 8 the top-seeded American in the men's draw.
Ten matches were suspended and 26 postponed. Serena Williams was
interrupted with a one-set lead, and despite a long wait, Roger
Federer never got on court.
---
Diving
Phelps isn't the only one at the pool aiming for eight golds.
The Chinese divers are, too. And, like Phelps, they're 1-for-1
after world champions Guo Jingjing and Wu Minxia won the women's
3-meter synchronized springboard title. A Russian duo took silver
and a pair of Germans got bronze, just ahead of Americans Kelci
Bryant and Ariel Rittenhouse. The United States hasn't won a diving
medal since 2000.
---
Cycling
Britian's Nicole Cooke won the women's road cycling race, held
in torrential rain on a course that started in Beijing and ended at
the Great Wall. Emma Johansson of Sweden got silver and Tatiana
Guderzo of Italy the bronze. Americans finished 25th, 33rd and
52nd.
One rider in the center of the main pack appeared to skid on the
wet surface and brought down others around her. All the riders were
able to get back on their bikes and continue, but several lost
time. South Korea's Gu Sungeon fell into a ditch and was the last
to remount.
"We were prepared for heat and humidity," said Amber Neben,
the 33rd-place finisher, "and all of a sudden, it's just cold and
wet and treacherous."
---
Weightlifting
Thailand's Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon set an Olympic
record - for amount of weight lifted in the women's 117-pound
class, not for the number of letters in her name, although that
might be up there, too. Her haul was 486.2 pounds. South Korea's
Yoon Jinhee finished in second place and Natassia Novikava of
Belarus got the bronze.
Melanie Roach set an American record with 424.6 pounds, but it
was only good for sixth.
The winner came up with her long name last year, after a fortune
teller suggested a name change for better luck. The 21-letter
surname, which was only "J" on the scoreboard, means
"prosperous." The first name roughly translates to "good girl,"
said Boosaba Yodbangtoey, the president of the Thai weightlifting
federation.
In men's 123-pound division, 17-year-old Long Qingquan of China
picked up the gold. Despite his youth, Long was the favorite.
---
Archery
Nobody beats the South Korean in women's archery.
Seriously, it's never happened. The South Koreans won their
sixth straight gold medal, every single one since the event's
inception in 1988. China got the silver and France took bronze.
"We came to the Olympics with high hopes and expectations,"
Park Sung-hyun said. "I believe we were able to achieve this medal
because of the people around us who helped us."
---
Shooting
David Kostelecky of the Czech Republic hit all 25 trap shooting
targets to take gold. Giovanni Pellielo of Italy won the silver and
Alexey Alipov of Russia won a shoot-off for bronze. World
record-holder Karsten Bindrich of Germany was seventh. Bret
Erickson, the top American, finished 22nd.
China's Guo Wenjun won the women's 10-meter air pistol with an
Olympic-record score. Natalia Paderina of Russia, who set an
Olympic record in qualifying, won the silver. China's Ren Jie, the
world record holder in the event, failed to qualify for the final.
---
Judo
Reigning Olympic champion Xian Dongmei of China was golden again
in the women's 114-pound division, beating An Kum Ae of North
Korea.
Japan's Masato Uchishiba won his second straight Olympic gold
medal, pinning France's Benjamin Darbelet just seconds into their
final match in the men's 145-pound division.
---
Fencing
Italy's Matteo Tagliariol topped France's Fabrice Jeannet for
gold in a battle of representatives from two of the world's top
fencing nations. Spain's Jose Luis Abajo took the bronze.
---
Track
Sprinter Tyson Gay followed a workout by proclaiming himself
"injury-free." He hasn't raced since hurting a hamstring during a
200 heat at Olympic trials in July. His only individual race here
is the 100, which begins Aug. 15.
"I think this rest really did me well," he said.
---
Soccer
The U.S. team gave up a free kick in the third minute of injury
time to settle for a 2-2 tie against the Netherlands. China lost
2-0 to Belgium; the Chinese, who haven't scored in the tournament,
must beat leader Brazil in its last group match to have a chance of
advancing.
Ronaldinho scored two second-half goals Sunday to lead Brazil
into the quarterfinals with a 5-0 rout over New Zealand. Argentina
advanced to the quarterfinals with a 1-0 victory over Australia.
Ivory Coast beat Serbia 4-2 Sunday to revive its chances of
reaching the quarterfinals. Italy secured a spot in the
quarterfinals by beating South Korea 3-0.
Victor Obinna scored one goal and set up another to lead Nigeria
to a 2-1 victory over Japan. Stephane Mbia scored in the second
half to lift Cameroon past Honduras 1-0.
---
Doping
The IOC has kicked out Greek sprinter Katerina Thanou, saying
her role in a drug-testing cover-up four years ago in Athens was
"a scandalous saga" that had brought the Olympic movement into
disrepute. Thanou and fellow Greek sprinter Kostas Kenteris missed
doping tests on the eve of the 2004 opening ceremony, and claimed
later they were injured in a motorcycle accident. Thanou issued a
statement harshly criticizing a "prearranged mockery of a
decision."
---
Beach volleyball
The American duo of Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor began
their bid for another gold medal with a decisive victory over a
Japanese duo. They needed just 36 minutes in an intermittent rain.
"We're in bathing suits," May-Treanor said, adding that the 87
percent humidity was more of a problem. "We're bound to get wet."
During the match, Walsh's wedding ring flew off. It was
discovered after about a 20-minute hunt featuring venue workers
combing the sand with metal detectors.
"It was pretty much under the net," said Peter Paul Hreszczuk,
the FIVB official manning the metal detector. "It's a plain gold
band, but obviously very precious."
---
Boxing
Americans went 1-1 in the ring, with Demetrius Andrade beating
Georgia's Kakhaber Juania 11-9 and Javier Molina getting clobbered
14-1 by Bulgarias Boris Georgiev. Afterward, U.S. coach Dan
Campbell revealed that Molina, who at 18 is the youngest American
boxer, wasn't cleared to fight until late Saturday after doctors
discovered a hole in his lung had leaked air into his body.
---
Men's water polo
The U.S. men beat host China 8-4, giving former Olympian Terry
Schroeder a victory in his Olympic coaching debut, albeit over a
team that may not win a game.
Hungary's bid for a third consecutive gold medal got off to a
shaky start, needing a goal with 32 seconds left to tie Montenegro
10-10. Also, Spain beat Canada 16-6, Australia knocked off Greece
12-8, Serbia upended Germany 11-7 and world No. 1 Croatia - with
the entire team sporting mustaches - beat Italy 11-7.
---
Field hockey
In their first Olympics appearance since 1996, the Americans dug
out of a 2-0 hole and tied Argentina, the worlds No. 2-ranked
team, at 2-2.
---
Sailing
American Zach Railey, ranked only 18th in the world, hauled in
first place overall in Finn class, ahead of three-time Olympic
medalist Ben Ainslie of Britain.
"I definitely have to say it is an honor to be the lead,"
Railey said. "But we are just four races into this and it's a long
regatta. We're not even halfway."
---
Rowing
Three more Chinese crews finished first in their heats, boosting
the total to five top spots in the first two days of Olympic
competition and increasing the host nation's chances of winning its
first rowing gold. Rain postponed the second day of competition
right before the two biggest events - the women's eight and the
men's eight. They'll be held Monday afternoon.
