I watched it, too. Pretty incredible race, especially the anchor leg. Now, I'm watching the men's gymnastics competition. Looks like the U.S is getting the Bronze.

Yes they did Gaff! Very exciting since they weren't expecting to medal at all once both Hamm brothers went out with injuries. So it's very exciting. The women's final is tonight. Hopefully they draw some inspiration from their male counterparts. Overall the US is doing very well. And like Matie, I'm of course partial to the US. Although I do cheer for all athletes because it is quite an honor to be able to represent one's country on the biggest sporting stage in the world. And there are just some stories that make me cheer for an athlete maybe more than another - no matter the country. Like the Korean guy who won the gold medal the other night. He's a swimmer and I don't remember which event it was, but he went to Athens 4 years ago, accidentally fell into the pool and was disqualified. End of Olympics for him. Now 4 years later not only did he win gold in this race Sunday, but managed a silver in the 200m freestyle right behind Michael Phelps. And while watching the Opening Ceremonies and the parade of nations, I did cheer not only for the US but for Great Britain (afterall, the US and Great Britain are brothers :wink: ), Ireland (because I have Irish blood in me), Australia and New Zealand because I like all of you guys, Italy for obvious reasons and of course Guatemala (because I have that in me as well - half of me to be exact). Oh and I just have to say that there have been 2 American swimmers who've won silver medals in their respective races that stand out to me most especially. One is Christine Magnusson and the other Matt Grevers (I think that's his name). Both come from the Chicago area. YAY!!!!! Chicago has been very well represented in the Games this year. :applaud: :clap:

Today it was the time-trial in biking. Fabian Cancallara won this time-trial. He is Olympic Champion. I am glad for him. It is a great biker with a strong character. If he wants something, he goes for it. He is a teammate from Sastre the winner of the Tour of France. I like him. :clap:

Fabian's s Swiss biker, I see. Levi Leipheimer an American got the bronze. He was not allowed to ride in the Tour de France because his team was eliminated due to doping scandals. He wasn't involved, but they still wouldn't allow him. Nice to see he did well and I hope he passes all his -*test*-('")s.

Well the US women's gymnastics team took silver. I'm very happy for them and proud of them. I'm disappointed for them too, though. I watched these girls during the Olympic trials 2 months ago and I know that they're the reining world champs so I know they could have done better last night. But they're humans, they make mistakes and they made them last night unfortunately. Nerves got the better of them and the Chinese capitalized on it. Putting all talk of scandals and possible cheating by the Chinese aside.......this was a great battle to watch and it all came down to the Chinese women wanting that gold medal more. They were obviously much calmer than the Americans and even while they were competing on home soil, they didn't have nearly the amount of pressure put on them than the Americans. So I'm very proud of Team USA for the silver medal they won. And I'm happy that the Chinese team won their first ever gold in the sport. I feel badly for Alicia Sacramone - she fell off the beam during her mount and then fell during a tumbling pass on the floor. Both were very uncharacteristic for her. She's usually a very solid gymnast. But even before the competition started I could tell by her body language that this was a very different young lady than I've seen before. She was definitely not as loose as she was during the Olympic trials in June. I think she might have psyched herself out a bit. She started strong on the vault but unfortunately faltered on her other 2 events. I'm sorry for her because she's been waiting for this opportunity since failing to make the Olympic team for Athens 4 years ago. She almost quit the sport altogether. But now here it is 4 years later and she had her time finally. She's taking the loss of the gold medal personally. I'm sad for her because while this was an entire team effort, unfortunately she was the one who made the biggest mistakes. Mistakes that the US couldn't afford to make. I still like this girl very much, I think she's very tough. I'm sure she won't compete at another Olympics, but she still has the vault final to redeem herself. And I wish her all the best. Now here's an awesome story: Chellsie Memmel. Four years ago she made the Olympic team bound for Athens but was knocked out because of an injury. Four years later, a few more injuries and almost 2 years not competing because of those injuries and she made the Olympic team. She was an amazing person to watch at the trials. She made a huge statement for herself. But as fate would have it, one week before the competition in Beijing began she injured her ankle during practice. She should have been a contender for the all around competition and competed on all events in the team final. But her injury limited her to only the uneven bars. Sunday night during the preliminaries, she unfortunately fell off the bars during her routine. This knocked her out of the event finals for sure. But she was still chosen to compete on the bars in the team final and what a routine it was. She's an amazing bars worker, her routine is huge and when executed flawlessly can score a big number for the team. And she most definitely came through for the team last night. I came to find out this morning that not only was her ankle injured during all this - it was actually broken! So my hat's off to her for performing under such pressure and on a broken ankle. She showed what true grit is all about.

I'm so glad this post was started!! I LOVE the Olympic games!! So much fun to watch & very exciting!! Most of all I enjoy watching Gymnastics, Swimming, Diving, and the beach vollyball. There sure are some VERY talented sports stars over there :) The women's gymnastics last night were amazing!! I'm so glad the USA took home the silver! China did a supurb job though & totally deserved the gold! I agree with you Gnat about Alicia Sacramone. I felt so bad for her & you could see the tears in her eyes due to the disappointment. :( I wanted to reach through the TV screen and give a hug so badly. I have seen her do things so perfectly before so I know she has the skill & power it just wasn't her night I guess. I sure wish her the best in the next round of competitions. On another note... Shawn Johnson is AMAZING!! I sure hope she can win some GOLD!! :)

CherryCoke - I did too. I wanted to give her a hug and say "You won the silver medal! Four years ago you didn't even make the team and now here you stand with a silver medal!" Ah well. Tonight we get to see Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson go head to head for the all around gold medal. Go girls!!!! They're both amazing to watch. Shawn seems so unshakeable and Nastia's got beautiful movement, very graceful.

Did anyone watch the Men's All Around in Gymnastics last night. The U.S didn't do very well - a lot of unstuck landings, but there were some very nice performances. Sasha A in particular on the pommel horse was fun to watch. I'm always amazed by some of the High bar and Parallel bar routines. I felt so bad for the Japanese gymnast Tomita when he fell from the Rings. Not only did it look painful, he was given his place in the All Around by another teammate, so there is no way due to honor that he could give up unless a limb was broken. Not that most Olympians would anyway, just us mere mortals. :roll:

Yes, that was so SCARY when the Japanese gymnast Tomita fell. It happened so fast & I thought for sure he was going to be hurt... but as far as I know he was ok besides a little pain and probably some black & blue spots. That was awful.

I saw that too,GG. It looked as though it was just about killing Tomita emotionally. What pressure these athletes are under--either by their own infliction--or,by others. They all deserve so much credit for what they've done,and are doing to succeed. ---------------------------- I know so much is being said about Michael Phelps,but I want to say how much I like his MOM!!! She is such an example of the enthusiasm,dedication,and looooong-suffering that the people BEHIND each athlete go through to see their loved one compete at the Games. It's just so nice to see somebody like her,there in the stands,cheering loudly on "her baby". GOUSAGOUSAGOUSA!!!!!!!!!!! --------------------------------------- Something else bothering me,though, how do the rest of you feel about that very little girl at the opening ceremony who sang,being REPLACED by another little girl who was 'cuter'?!! So that a certain 'image' could be given. Boy! THAT surely sents ME an 'image' and message. How about you?

From the picture of the little girl who actually sang the song, I thought she was plenty cute. If she had been allowed to sing, I'm pretty sure everyone would have thought she was cute. So, much of "cute" depends on more than just facial features. It has to do with the inner person coming out. Sad so many other countries have become trapped in needing a perfect image just like us.

Congrats to the USA with Michael Phelps and already 6 Olympic medals. I think he will beat Mark Spitz. Andre was a great fan of Mark Spitz when he was a young boy as he was a good swimmer to. And now he is a fan of Michael Phelps. He loves the swimmers and I love the bikers :clap:

It was a very good day in Beijing for the US yesterday. Michael Phelps gets his 6th gold, Ryan Lochte outswam Aaron Piersol to take the gold (Piersol won silver) and a little known American woman, Rebecca Soni, won a surprise gold in her meet as well. And if that all wasn't good and exciting enough.......Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson went 1-2 in the women's all-around finals for the first time in US history. Nastia Liukin took the gold - first time the US won back to back Olympic gold in the individual all-around finals. It was a beautiful performance, and a gutsy one by Shawn Johnson. I'm so happy for Nastia, who was born in Russia to parents who were part of the Soviet gymnastics machine of the 1980's. Valeri, her father, lost the all-around gold by 1/10th of a point to his friend and teammate in 1988. This gold medal his daughter won 20 years later has to take away some of that sting. But I was highly impressed with the way she handled the pressure. This is a girl who a year ago faced horrible criticism by the sports media that she was washed up and even too old - her time had passed. She suffered a terrible injury last year that set her back some. And unfortunately for her, Shawn Johnson burst out on the scene and literally stole the show. She was favored for gold yesterday. I knew that it would come down to these two, they are the two best gymnasts in the world afterall. I knew they'd take gold and silver, but I have to admit - after watching how consistant Shawn Johnson has been, I thought she'd be the sure bet for gold and Nastia would take silver. I was not at all, however, disappointed for either girl. They're both bringing big medals home for the US. And they're not done. Event finals begin this weekend. What I love the most about this story is that while they were rivals in this competition, they didn't stop being friends. After each girl got done with a routine, they'd come off the podium and receive hugs and well wishes from the other's coach as well as the other girl. And both coaches even remained very friendly and supportive of each other and each other's gymnast. It's impressive and shows how far this sport and these athletes have come. Both Shawn and Nastia deserved the medals they won and I have no doubt that each is happy for the other. Congrats girls! On a sidenote - anybody who's ever followed the sport of gymnastics like I have, it would be nice to hear your views on this new scoring system. Because after watching last night's event, I have to say that it sucks. I think there were at least 2 events where Nastia's scores should have been higher (one namely was the vault in which she executed flawlessly, yet was deducted so much and I have no idea how) and even Shawn's uneven bars score should have been higher; and yet the Chinese girl who ended up winning bronze scored an abnormally high score on the beam even though she severely wobbled her way through many of the skills. I was perplexed and thought for a moment that she would actually edge out both American girls for the gold. I just don't see how this system is any better than the old one........although it's vastly more confusing to figure out.

Wow, what a night last night!! :applaud: I was so tired but couldn't go to bed... I just had to watch the entire gymnastics event!! The USA women did AWESOME!!!! :clap: I'm sooo happy for Nastia & Shawn! I knew they could do it & I'm so proud of them for holding up under all that pressure. I wish they both could have won gold but I'm so glad it worked out the way it did since Nastia is the oldest of the 2. What an amazing moment her and her dad had when she won & they both hugged. All the yrs of hard work finally paid off! And Shawn & her coach (him being from China) had happiness and joy all over their faces!! :) I agree with you Gnat about the new scoring system being unfair. I don't know if its the new system itself or if the judges just had their favorites. Shawn & Nastia both deserved higher scores than what they got. It was a shame that they didn't get all the credit they deserved. But its over, they won, and now they can celebrate :) I bet they sure slept good last night (if they could even sleep after all the excitement, LOL). :) Wasn't that race with Phelps and Lochte SUPER!? :mrgreen: How exciting to watch such close friends and amazing swimmers compete against each other. I love both of them!! Wow, what a night in the sports world!! Ryan Lochte lives only about 2 hrs away from where I live so he is a HUGE sport celebrity around here and I'm sure now he will be an even bigger one, hehe :) The Misty & Kerri USA volleyball last night was super!! What a close first match. The other team was sure making it a challenge for them :) I'm glad they won & it was perfect since it was also Kerri's 30th Bday!! I can't wait to see more of the volleyball matches :) I also want to see some of the track & field events!! Can you tell I LOVE the Olympics, LOL!? :excited: I wish they would take place more often but then it probably wouldn't be as much fun.

Hello fellow Olympic lovers! I too stayed up very late to watch Nastia and Shawn go for the gold and silver. It was a wonderful competition. Nastia looks like a dream on the beam, she makes all those athletic skills look balletic. Shawn is a dynamo. Watching the two congratulate each other was a wonderful lesson for my son in sportsmanship. As for the scoring, I find it really difficult to understand. I looked it up on the web, even. It does seem as if there is some anomaly with the vault scores; they are higher than the other apparatus because of the scoring system itself. It wasn't intended that way. I think there is no perfect scoring system for these artistic sports and there will always be bias. It is the same in the synchronized diving, for example, and certainly in skating. I do think the Olympic Committee is trying its best to counteract it, though. But I doubt it ever will be. I know that you did not bring this up in your talk about the gymnastics, but I am upset about the Chinese girls apparent underage, and not because they got the gold medal over the US. From what I understand the age requirement was to prevent the exploitation of young girls, some were competing at 12 even. So, it is disturbing to see some of these girls compete that look like they could be in grade school with my son. I don't think their age can be masked forever, and the truth will eventually come out. If in fact these girls are underage, it is really unfair to them. On another note, I really enjoy track and field and am looking forward to the competition. I am also enjoying some of the non-prime time games that do not feature the US during the day on MSNBC. Table tennis was pretty cool, as was fencing. Thanks for all your thoughts about the games! GinaP :cool: