The Best Photos from London 2012 Olympics

The full moon rises through the Olympic Rings hanging beneath Tower Bridge during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 3, 2012. (REUTERS/Luke MacGregor)

Fireworks explode over the stadium during the Closing Ceremony on Day 16 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 12, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

McKayla Maroney of the United States stands on the podium with her silver medal during the medal ceremony following the Artistic Gymnastics Women's Vault final on Day 9 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at North Greenwich Arena on August 5, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

U.S. gymnast Gabrielle Douglas performs on the balance beam during the artistic gymnastics women's individual all-around competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics, in London. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

United States' Michael Phelps swims in his last Olympic race, the men's 4 X 100-meter medley relay, at the Aquatics Centre during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Saturday, Aug. 4, 2012. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

David Boudia of the United States competes in the Men's 10m Platform Diving Semifinal on Day 15 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre on August 11, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

Usain Bolt of Jamaica celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win gold during the Men's 200m Final on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 9, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

South Korea's Hyeonwoo Kim bites his gold medal at the podium of Men's 66Kg Greco-Roman wrestling at the ExCel venue during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 7, 2012. (REUTERS/Damir Sagolj)

United States' Ryan Lochte reacts after finishing first in the men's 400-meter individual medley swimming final at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Saturday, July 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa De Olza)

(L-R) McKayla Maroney, Kyla Ross, Alexandra Raisman, Gabrielle Douglas and Jordyn Wieber of the United States celebrate after winning the gold medal in the Artistic Gymnastics Women's Team final on Day 4 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at North Greenwich Arena on July 31, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)



The Steps towards Glory always start with 'G'

Phelps beats Lochte in 200 IM to secure Another Gold Medal

By PAUL NEWBERRY | Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Michael Phelps spent the day thinking about all the things he's doing for the final time at the pool. It turns out that included one last win over Ryan Lochte.

Phelps finally has a gold all his own at his final Olympics.

Adding to an already unprecedented medal collection, he claimed his first individual victory of the London Games and handed Lochte a double disappointment on his rival's final night in the pool Thursday.

Phelps set the tone right from the start with a dominating butterfly leg to become the first male swimmer to win the same individual event at three straight Olympics in the 200-meter individual medley. He claimed his 20th career medal — and 16th gold — in 1 minute, 54.27 seconds, just off his winning time in Beijing but still good enough for gold, just ahead of Lochte.

When it was done, there wasn't that water-pounding celebration we've seen so many times from Phelps — just a slight smile as he hung on the lane rope, gazing up at the stands and soaking it all in.

"Going into every call room, I said it's my last semifinal or my last prelim," Phelps said, reflecting on a busy day that included a morning swim, then two more races in the evening. "We're kind of chalking up all the lasts of certain things."

As he stepped on the medal podium — yep, that familiar top rung — Phelps' eyes were glassy and he whispered something to Lochte. Then, staring up at the U.S. flag while the nation anthem played, he bit his lip and seemed to be struggling to hold back the tears.

Phelps has never been too revealing with his emotions away from the pool.

But, with just two days to go in his swimming career, there's a definite chink in the facade.

He's starting to look as human out of the water as he is superhuman in it.

The Steps towards Glory always start with 'G'

Mitt Romney plans to Raise taxes on 95% of Americans.

US men beat Nigeria 156-73 in Olympic basketball

By TOM WITHERS | Associated Press


LONDON (AP) — The last group in England with this many records was The Beatles.

The U.S. men's Olympic basketball team beat Nigeria 156-73 Thursday night, an epic blowout that answered the Americans' detractors and sent a clear message to let them be.

After two opening routs that provoked criticism of their slow starts and outside shooting, the Americans rewrote the record books.

They led by 26 in the first quarter, had an Olympic-record 78 points in the first half and Carmelo Anthony scored 37 points, including 10 of 12 3-pointers, to break the U.S. single-game scoring record in less than three quarters.

"Our guys just couldn't miss," said coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Incredibly, they eclipsed the 100-point mark with 5 minutes still left in the third.

"When we get hot, it's a big problem," Kobe Bryant said. "So you have all these guys on one team and then all get hot on the same night, it's tough."

They broke the Olympic record for most points in a game with 4:37 still to play, and set U.S. records for 3-pointers (26), field goals (59) and field-goal percentage (71).

When Andre Iguodala hit a 3-pointer with 4:37 left, the Americans had surpassed the previous Olympic record of 138 points set by Brazil against Egypt in 1988. When the record was announced to the mesmerized crowd, all the players seated on the U.S. bench got up and walked single file past Krzyzewski, slapping hands with him and his staff.

Gentlemen, take a bow.

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The Steps towards Glory always start with 'G'

Roger Federer gets past Alejandro Falla

Roger Federer of Switzerland returns to Alejandro Falla of Colombia in a first round match at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon, London at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Great Britain pair wins Olympic rowing gold

Great Britain's Helen Glover (L) and Heather Stanning pose with their gold medals on the podium of the women's pair final A of the rowing event during the London 2012 Olympic Games


Britain's Helen Glover and Heather Stanning won women's pair, which gives the hosting nation their first gold medal of the London Olympics, while the men's eight won the bronze.

Roared on by Princes William and Harry, the British duo - who only came together in 2010 after missing out on other boats - took a commanding lead early in the race and held off a late challenge from Australia to claim the first Olympic gold won by a British women's crew.

"Ecstatic," Glover said on the bank of the lake. "It's so surreal, it will take forever to sink in. We're just really relieved, thank you so much everyone."

The British duo had started as strong favourites for the title after dominating the international season and following their heat, in which they set an Olympic best time. They punched the air as they went over the line, waved to the crowd and covered their faces.

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'Little Pacquiao' comes up big at Olympic boxing

Philippines' Mark Barriga reacts after defeating Italy's Manuel Cappai in the Men's Light Fly (49kg) Round of 32 boxing match during the London 2012 Olympic Games (Reuters)

By GREG BEACHAM — AP Sports Writer

LONDON — Little Pacquiao came up big for the Philippines in the Olympic boxing tournament.

Light flyweight Mark Barriga easily handled Italy's Manuel Cappai in the opening bout for the only Filipino boxer in London, earning a 17-7 victory Tuesday.

Barriga's one-sided win was an encouraging result for a strong boxing nation with little recent history of amateur success. The 19-year-old Barriga trained in Manny Pacquiao's camp to prepare for the Olympics, earning the nickname "Little Pacquiao" in the Filipino media.

The 5-foot-2 slugger's potent punching power suggests he was taking notes from the beloved Filipino congressman. He repeatedly tagged Cappai with shots while showing impressive movement.

Although five of the nine Olympic medals won by the Philippines were achieved in boxing, most of the best young Filipino fighters these days jump straight to the pros - including Pacquiao, who turned pro shortly after his 17th birthday.

Two Cubans also advanced during the afternoon session at ExCel, and Indian light flyweight Devendro Singh Laishram recorded the quickest stoppage of the tournament. U.S. Marine Sgt. Jamel Herring lost his opening light welterweight bout to Kazakhstan's Daniyar Yeleussinov.

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Phelps qualifies 5th fastest for 200 fly

By BETH HARRIS (AP Sports Writer) | The Associated Press – 6 hours ago'

LONDON (AP) -- Michael Phelps opened defense of his Olympic title in the 200-meter butterfly with the fifth-fastest qualifying time in the preliminaries Monday.

Phelps has yet to have the quickest time in the morning heats at the London Games four years after he won a record eight gold medals in Beijing.

He finished third in his heat at 1 minute, 55.53 seconds, trailing Dinko Jukic of Austria and U.S. teammate Tyler Clary to the wall.

"I'm pretty happy with that swim," Phelps said. "That's all I needed it to be."

Phelps has won the 200 fly at the last two Olympics and set the world record at the 2009 world championships.

[ Video: Phelps' new workout routine: combat training ]

He was back in the water hours after swimming a solid second leg on the 4x100 freestyle relay that took silver after Ryan Lochte was overhauled by the French on the closing lap.

"Just getting last night sort of out of the way was something that I needed," Phelps said. "I guess I got to bed pretty late. We're all falling asleep pretty late. We're all excited."

Phelps' mother, Debbie, nodded her head slightly when she saw her son had safely advanced. He was the slowest qualifier for the 400 individual medley final on Saturday, and his surprising fourth-place finish kept him off the medals podium.

"I have no idea what it was, but I don't think it had anything to do with confidence," he said. "I felt I was ready to swim faster than that. It just didn't happen."

Jukic had the top time of 1:54.79, while Clary was second-best at 1:54.96 in advancing to the evening semifinals.

"I felt fantastic. The time was faster than it was at trials," Clary said. "I hurt a heck of a lot more at the end of the race in trials. So I had actually said to myself coming into the third wall that I was amazed at how well I felt. Just wanted to see what I could bring it home in."

Velimir Stjepanovic of Serbia was third at 1:54.99. Others who made the semis included Chad le Clos of South Africa (fourth), 2008 bronze medalist Takeshi Matsuda of Japan (eighth), 2008 silver medalist Laszlo Cseh of Hungary (ninth), Wu Peng of China (10th) and Nick D'Arcy of Australia (12th).

Federica Pellegrini qualified fastest in the 200 freestyle, keeping the Italian on course to defend her Olympic title.

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2012 Olympic Equestrian Photos

Peter Thomsen of Germany competes in the equestrian eventing cross country phase at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Monday, July 30, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Greece's Voula Papachristou expelled from Olympics

Greece's Voula Papachristou expelled from Olympics

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Paraskevi "Voula" Papachristou is ‘bitter and upset’ after a racist tweet gets her kicked out of Olympics.

Greece's Voula Papachristou lands in the sand after her jump at the Women's Triple Jump final at the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki, Finland, in this file photo dated Friday, June 29, 2012. The Hellenic Olympic Committee has removed triple jumper Voula Papachristou from the team taking part in the upcoming London Olympic Games over comments she made on Twitter making fun of African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party. “The track and field athlete Paraskevi (Voula) Papachristou is placed outside the Olympic Team for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement,” a statement by the Hellenic Olympic Committee says. Papachristou is in Athens, and was to travel to London “shortly before the track events start,” the announcement says. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, file)

IOC Gets Americans Asking for Rule Change

LONDON – American athletes risked disqualification by leading a revolt against the International Olympic Committee on Monday and its draconian laws of forbidding competitors from using social media to promote their sponsors.

Spurred on by the outspoken words of members of the United States team, Olympians from around the world launched a Twitter campaign under the hashtags #Rule40 and #WeDemandChange in an attempt to pressure the IOC into action.

Rule 40 is the section in the athletes’ code of conduct that warns anyone flouting the strict guidelines on the use of social media as a promotional tool will be expelled from the Games.

Dozens of athletes responded angrily, including U.S. 400-meter star runner Sanya Richards-Ross.

"I'd love to show my great sponsors love," Richards-Ross said. "I am one of the very fortunate athletes that work with wonderful sponsors during the Olympic year. [This is an] injustice."

Others took to Twitter to voice their displeasure, although most were careful to avoid any direct mention of the companies that endorse them.

The IOC also frowns upon strong criticism of the organization. National committees warned their athletes that any act of dissent, such as the Rule 40 tweets, could be grounds for disqualification.

That did not stop U.S. 20-kilometer race walker Maria Michta, who gave a heartfelt and eloquent description of how the regulations have affected her.

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Fans disappointed they can't see Olympic flame

The cauldron is made up of pronged components, which rose together when lit by seven young athletes as part of the Opening Ceremony festivities. It will be stationed at one end of the stadium, but, unlike the Bird's nest in Beijing, it's not high enough to be visible from the outside.

London's Olympic budget was cut because of the economic downturn but it's not known whether that contributed to the decision on how to place the flame.

"They have done a disappearing act with it," said Londoner Colin Millard, 58. "We can't wait to see some events, and it doesn't spoil your day, but of course you would like to think it is all part of the experience. You come to the Games, you get a photo with the flame."

Others were similarly bemused at the fact that apart from TV viewers, the only people who will able to see the flame are those fortunate enough to hold tickets for the track and field competition.

"It was like, now you see it, now you don't," said Linda Samuel, of Essex, just outside London. "I loved the Ceremony, and the flame was a dramatic moment. But now it's like it's not here."

The cauldron was the brainchild of designer Thomas Heatherwick and is made up of 204 flames in copper-petal bowls, representing the participating nations. They are mounted on stems of stainless steel, which were then painted in a shade of blue known as "bad black."

The cauldron stands at 25 feet high and weighs more than 35,000 pounds. At the end of the Games, the prongs will be dismantled and each one presented to the nation it represents.

Men's 100m Backstroke semi final1 on Day 2

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 29: (L-R) Nick Thoman of the United States, Matthew Grevers of the United States and Ryosuke Irie of Japan compete in the Men's 100m Backstroke semi final1 on Day 2 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre on July 29, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

TV Ratings Sail on Sunday in US Markets

WEYMOUTH, ENGLAND - JULY 29: Greg Douglas from Canada in action sailing the Finn class during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Weymouth & Portland Venue at Weymouth Harbour on July 29, 2012 in Weymouth, England. (Photo by Richard Langdon/Getty Images)

Wieber left out of gymnastics all-around

AP Photo

Raisman and Douglas Advance to FINALS

In a stunning last-second turn of events, defending world all-around champion Jordyn Wieber was been shut out of the Olympic all-around finals.

Contrary to what many of us would have ever envisioned, it wasn’t a Russian, a Romanian, or a Chinese challenger who has stolen Wieber’s chance to achieve her individual Olympic dream, and it wasn’t even her rival Gabby Douglas, whom many had pegged to fight neck and neck with Wieber for this all-around crown.

It was her other teammate – the U.S. team captain and one of Wieber’s best friends – Aly Raisman

Few in the arena probably even realized that the sturdy Raisman had an opportunity to seize one of the two available all-around spots on this American team when she saluted to begin her final event – floor. Both Douglas and Wieber, the two rivals who had been leading the competition as expected up until the final event, had both stepped out of bounds during their floor routines, costing each some valuable tenths. But hardly anyone noticed what it actually meant.

The audience had likely been so distracted by the overall brilliant performance of the American team on all four events, along with the deafening British crowd that was electrified by the host team as they competed alongside the world champion American squad. Jordyn Wieber was even in the midst of performing her final floor routine when the monstrous 16.133 was flashed for Beth Tweddle’s sensational uneven bars performance on the Brits’ final event – the highest score of the competition thus far, yielding the loudest eruption from the audience.

While the Brits were roaring, an unexpected door was quietly opened for Aly Raisman, who needed a 14.966 to surpass Wieber and grab one of the two available all-around spots for this team.

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Parents of Olympian's reaction is Golden, Daughter Doesn't place

The parents of U.S. gymnast Aly Raisman are no different. And like Debbie Phelps, the mother of Michael Phelps, and other parents before them, the Raismans can find it excruciating to watch their daughter in competition. Case in point: the Raismans watching Aly during the uneven bars segment of the women's gymnastics preliminary competition. As entertaining as Raisman's routine was on on the bars, her parent's routine was equally worth a second look.

As this short video shows, Aly's parents -- Lynn and Ricky -- have a harder time taking in their daughter on the bars in fear of mistakes or injury. Both parents are different in their own way when it comes to handling their nerves, whenever Aly is in the spotlight, Lynn is talking and squirming her way through her entire routine while Ricky remains nearly silent until its conclusion. where he'll often offer an explosive "Yeah!" almost as if, his daughter had just won something bigger than the Lotto.

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