WHAT would American tennis be without the sisters?
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The World's Fastest Man
USAIN BOLT. The perfect name. New world record. 9.69 seconds. Unreal. Jamaica's first Olympic champion. But he needs to stop disrespecting the field by showboating before the finish line. My old track coach would bench us for the next three meets if we did anything so egregious. He will be one of the track greats if he doesn't get distracted by that gargantuan ego.
Phelps Wins 8th Gold, Breaks Spitz' Record
BEIJING (AP) — Michael Phelps won his record eighth gold medal Sunday at the Beijing Olympics as a member of the victorious U.S. 400-meter medley relay team, breaking a tie with Mark Spitz for most golds in a single games.
Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Phelps and Jason Lezak won in a world-record of 3 minutes, 29.34 seconds, lowering the old mark of 3:30.68 set four years ago in Athens.
The U.S. swept the men's relays in Beijing, with Phelps leading off in the 400 and 800 free relays. Lezak anchored the 400 free to a narrow victory over France to preserve Phelps' historic bid.
Australia took the silver in 3:30.04.
Japan earned the bronze in 3:31.18.
Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Phelps and Jason Lezak won in a world-record of 3 minutes, 29.34 seconds, lowering the old mark of 3:30.68 set four years ago in Athens.
The U.S. swept the men's relays in Beijing, with Phelps leading off in the 400 and 800 free relays. Lezak anchored the 400 free to a narrow victory over France to preserve Phelps' historic bid.
Australia took the silver in 3:30.04.
Japan earned the bronze in 3:31.18.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Phelps Photo Finish Ties Spitz' Record of 7 Golds
BEIJING (AP) - Michael Phelps swam into Olympic history with a magnificent finish Saturday, his arms soaring through the water one last time to get a hand on the wall and win his seventh gold medal of the Beijing Games.
Phelps beat Milorad Cavic of Serbia in the 100-meter butterfly by a hundredth of a second, setting an Olympic record in 50.58 seconds but snapping his streak of setting world records in each of his previous six gold-medal performances.
The 23-year-old American has now pulled even with the greatest of Olympic records, matching Mark Spitz's seven gold medals from the 1972 Munich Games.
Call this one the Great Haul of China - and it's not done yet.
Phelps will return on Sunday to swim in his final event of the Beijing Games, taking the butterfly leg of the 4x100 medley relay. The Americans will be heavily favored to give him his eighth gold, leaving Spitz behind.
Phelps beat Milorad Cavic of Serbia in the 100-meter butterfly by a hundredth of a second, setting an Olympic record in 50.58 seconds but snapping his streak of setting world records in each of his previous six gold-medal performances.
The 23-year-old American has now pulled even with the greatest of Olympic records, matching Mark Spitz's seven gold medals from the 1972 Munich Games.
Call this one the Great Haul of China - and it's not done yet.
Phelps will return on Sunday to swim in his final event of the Beijing Games, taking the butterfly leg of the 4x100 medley relay. The Americans will be heavily favored to give him his eighth gold, leaving Spitz behind.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
James Blake Upsets Roger Federer in Beijing
BEIJING (AP)— Roger Federer’s bid for his first Olympic singles medal ended Thursday night when he lost to American James Blake.
With the sort of lackluster performance once unthinkable for Federer, he was eliminated in the quarterfinals 6-4, 7-6 (2).
The upset was a stunner in that Blake had won only a single set in their previous eight matches. But the top-seeded Federer is battling a yearlong slump that has left him stalled at 12 major titles, two shy of Pete Sampras’ record.
His Wimbledon reign ended last month, and he came to Beijing knowing he would lose the No. 1 ranking after 4 1/2 years to Rafael Nadal next week.
Federer’s latest defeat means no rematch in Sunday’s final against Nadal, who won in epic fashion when they met for the Wimbledon title.
Federer had been seeking his first Olympic medal after losing in the singles semifinals in Sydney and in the second round in Athens. He was scheduled to play a quarterfinal doubles match later Thursday with Swiss partner Stanislas Wawrinka.
The upset was sweet for the No. 8-seeded Blake, a first-time Olympian at 28 and the lone U.S. male to survive the first round of singles.
Read the rest of the AP report...
::
What a great result for Blake, who has struggled with confidence all year. What a time, what a place to get your first victory in umpteen tries over Federer.
2008 is looking very good for the accomplishments of Black men on the world stage. In tennis in particular, this is the third major event where a Black man has made the final four. France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils made the semifinals of the Australian Open and Roland Garros respectively, while Tsonga went one step further and made the finals where he fell to Novak Djokovic of Serbia. Monfils lost to Federer in Paris.
Go, James. One more victory will guarantee you an Olympic medal.
With the sort of lackluster performance once unthinkable for Federer, he was eliminated in the quarterfinals 6-4, 7-6 (2).
The upset was a stunner in that Blake had won only a single set in their previous eight matches. But the top-seeded Federer is battling a yearlong slump that has left him stalled at 12 major titles, two shy of Pete Sampras’ record.
His Wimbledon reign ended last month, and he came to Beijing knowing he would lose the No. 1 ranking after 4 1/2 years to Rafael Nadal next week.
Federer’s latest defeat means no rematch in Sunday’s final against Nadal, who won in epic fashion when they met for the Wimbledon title.
Federer had been seeking his first Olympic medal after losing in the singles semifinals in Sydney and in the second round in Athens. He was scheduled to play a quarterfinal doubles match later Thursday with Swiss partner Stanislas Wawrinka.
The upset was sweet for the No. 8-seeded Blake, a first-time Olympian at 28 and the lone U.S. male to survive the first round of singles.
Read the rest of the AP report...
::
What a great result for Blake, who has struggled with confidence all year. What a time, what a place to get your first victory in umpteen tries over Federer.
2008 is looking very good for the accomplishments of Black men on the world stage. In tennis in particular, this is the third major event where a Black man has made the final four. France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils made the semifinals of the Australian Open and Roland Garros respectively, while Tsonga went one step further and made the finals where he fell to Novak Djokovic of Serbia. Monfils lost to Federer in Paris.
Go, James. One more victory will guarantee you an Olympic medal.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Greatest Olympian of All Time
BEIJING (AP) — Michael Phelps has become the winningest Olympic athlete ever, earning his fourth gold medal of the Beijing Games with a world record in the 200-meter butterfly. The American touched in 1 minute, 52.03 seconds, breaking his old mark of 1:52.09 set at last year's world championships in Australia.
It was Phelps' 10th career gold medal, breaking a tie with Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis and two others for most golds. He is 4-for-4 so far, setting world records in each of his events.
It was Phelps' 10th career gold medal, breaking a tie with Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis and two others for most golds. He is 4-for-4 so far, setting world records in each of his events.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Those Fighting The War Against Barack
THOSE FIGHTING the war against Barack are making their voices louder, all at the same time.
Such a fever pitch.
Their intent is clear.
Barack must be stopped at all costs.
The confluence of recent events on the campaign trail is no coincidence. I don't need to cite any examples. If you're paying attention, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you aren't, then ignorance is bliss.
Those fighting the war against Barack are targeting delegates to the national convention and they're dog whistling to nutcases.
The next five months is going to be a turning point in American history.
That's where we are.
You can say I'm positing a "sky is falling" overreaction, but history provides plenty of evidence that the mood and atmosphere that exists right now is just the kind that precipitates stopping insurgent leaders from claiming power.
Doesn't matter the political system.
The tools of propaganda, at once blatant and insidious, work anywhere.
John McCain is the most dangerous presidential candidate I've witnessed in my lifetime.
Those fighting the war against Barack would make you think Barack deserves that description.
Those fighting the war against Barack are flat-out making stuff up in order to inflame folks.
You better believe this is the most important election in 100 years.
Pray for Barack and his family if you are inclined to do so.
Pray.
Such a fever pitch.
Their intent is clear.
Barack must be stopped at all costs.
The confluence of recent events on the campaign trail is no coincidence. I don't need to cite any examples. If you're paying attention, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you aren't, then ignorance is bliss.
Those fighting the war against Barack are targeting delegates to the national convention and they're dog whistling to nutcases.
The next five months is going to be a turning point in American history.
That's where we are.
You can say I'm positing a "sky is falling" overreaction, but history provides plenty of evidence that the mood and atmosphere that exists right now is just the kind that precipitates stopping insurgent leaders from claiming power.
Doesn't matter the political system.
The tools of propaganda, at once blatant and insidious, work anywhere.
John McCain is the most dangerous presidential candidate I've witnessed in my lifetime.
Those fighting the war against Barack would make you think Barack deserves that description.
Those fighting the war against Barack are flat-out making stuff up in order to inflame folks.
You better believe this is the most important election in 100 years.
Pray for Barack and his family if you are inclined to do so.
Pray.
Cullen Jones Makes History, U.S. Wins 400 Free Relay
I MISSED this historic event last night, but when I read the article this morning, I immediately broke out into tears.
::
BEIJING - When Cullen Jones powered through the water Sunday night, chasing history, the charismatic kid who learned to swim in Newark could hear the roar from a half a world away. Amid the deafening cheers from the thousands squeezed into the National Aquatics Center, Jones felt the support from the scores of people that he touched along an incredible and unlikely path that began in inner city pools and led him here to the world's biggest stage. An ambassador for African-American swimmers, Jones wanted to shatter stereotypes one lap at a time, eager to spread his message that, yeah, black kids can swim, too.
He also wanted to help out a buddy on his own personal mission.
Jones accomplished both by helping the 4X100 freestyle relay team win the gold medal in a comeback for the ages. In a race soaked with drama and subplots, the Americans shattered the world record they had set just hours earlier in the prelims, blistering through the water in 3 minutes, 8.24 seconds.
Trailing after three legs, anchor Jason Lezak erased a huge gap to overtake and out-touch French world record holder Alain Bernard to set off a wild celebration. A few days after Bernard declared his team would "smash" the Americans in the finals, the U.S. team authored a stunning chapter in these Olympics.
"We beat a team in most people's mind was not beatable," said U.S. coach Eddie Reese. "It was amazing. (Lezak's leg) had to be the best ever and it was the best ever. That's the kind of anchor you dream of."
Jones became the second African-American swimmer to win a gold medal as the team kept Michael Phelps' quest for an unprecedented eight golds alive. But it was Lezak's fastest split in history at 46.06 seconds and mad dash in the final frenzied moments when he hunted down Bernard after being behind by more than eight-tenths of a second that had everyone buzzing.
Read the rest...
::
BEIJING - When Cullen Jones powered through the water Sunday night, chasing history, the charismatic kid who learned to swim in Newark could hear the roar from a half a world away. Amid the deafening cheers from the thousands squeezed into the National Aquatics Center, Jones felt the support from the scores of people that he touched along an incredible and unlikely path that began in inner city pools and led him here to the world's biggest stage. An ambassador for African-American swimmers, Jones wanted to shatter stereotypes one lap at a time, eager to spread his message that, yeah, black kids can swim, too.
He also wanted to help out a buddy on his own personal mission.
Jones accomplished both by helping the 4X100 freestyle relay team win the gold medal in a comeback for the ages. In a race soaked with drama and subplots, the Americans shattered the world record they had set just hours earlier in the prelims, blistering through the water in 3 minutes, 8.24 seconds.
Trailing after three legs, anchor Jason Lezak erased a huge gap to overtake and out-touch French world record holder Alain Bernard to set off a wild celebration. A few days after Bernard declared his team would "smash" the Americans in the finals, the U.S. team authored a stunning chapter in these Olympics.
"We beat a team in most people's mind was not beatable," said U.S. coach Eddie Reese. "It was amazing. (Lezak's leg) had to be the best ever and it was the best ever. That's the kind of anchor you dream of."
Jones became the second African-American swimmer to win a gold medal as the team kept Michael Phelps' quest for an unprecedented eight golds alive. But it was Lezak's fastest split in history at 46.06 seconds and mad dash in the final frenzied moments when he hunted down Bernard after being behind by more than eight-tenths of a second that had everyone buzzing.
Read the rest...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)