I've had a couple late nights this week, due to watching the live swimming and gymnastics finals. Obviously, the big story is Michael Phelps, who is now 5 for 5 in gold medals, winning the 400 IM, 4x100 free relay, 200 free, 200 fly, and 4x200 free relay. The 4x100 was by far the most exciting of them all, with Jason Lezak barely edging out France's Alain Bernard. The US team won by 0.05 seconds, in one of the most exhilarating finishes I've ever seen. After the last turn, France was almost certainly going to win the gold, and Team USA looked like they had the silver in the bag. Adding to that, the French were quoted as saying they wanted to "smash" the Americans, and that's what they came to Beijing to do. But in the last lap, Bernard started to lag behind, giving Lezak the perfect chance to narrow France's substantial lead. I was literally on the edge of my seat as Lezak got closer and closer to Bernard. I jumped when they hit the wall, and the US had won! Awesome. Who's talking now, France?!?! Michael Phelps has made history: his 6 golds from Athens and 5 (so far) in Beijing = 11 career Olympic gold medals, the most of anybody ever. But, he's still on his quest to go 8 for 8, surpassing the great Mark Spitz's record of 7. He also attempted this 4 years ago in Athens, but won 6 golds and 2 bronze. Maybe he will prevail this time!
In gymnastics, the US men's team won bronze in the team final, and the women won silver. China won both team golds and their star, Yang Wei, won the men's all-around title. Next up is the women's all around competition, with Team USA's Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin among the competitors. Hopefully, one of them will win, since Americans Carly Patterson and Paul Hamm, won the women's and men's all-around in Athens.
China's wins in gymnastics have not come without controversy. Many people speculate that China has lied about the ages of members of the women's team, claiming them to be older than they really are. So just how old are these gymnasts? International gymnastics rules state that to compete in senior level competitions, like the Olympics, gymnasts must be 16 or older. It is unsure whether the accusations are true, but evidently, China has the advantage of getting away with a lot of things at these Games.
On a more positive note, Team USA is coming along. After Day 6, we have 10 golds, 9 silvers, and 15 bronze for a total of 34 medals, but China currently leads with 22 golds (!), 8 silvers, and 5 bronze for a total of 35. Some other sports to keep an eye on (besides the two already mentioned): basketball, where the "Redeem Team" is trying to win back their reputation as the world's best after their poor showing in 2004; beach volleyball, where Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh are defending their '04 gold; track & field, which starts up this weekend; surprisingly, tennis, where James Blake upset Switzerland's Roger Federer (yes, him); and many more.
Switching topics completely, we finally get our schedules in the mail tomorrow! My "nerd schedule" will basically consist of a boatload of honors classes (like always), wind ensemble (which will be hard), gym (blerg!), lunch (of course), and newspaper elective (the only elective I had room for). I shall see where everything fits tomorrow, but for now, I'm going to go find something productive to do.
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seem like a better political move in my mind. She could then focus on her presidential ambitions. (You know she wants to run 'cuz there ain't no satisfaction in Wasilla.) But leaving abruptly without a clear explanation is a bad move. She'll seem too pushy, too impatient. It won't be long before she takes over the airwaves again. *rolls eyes*
So, this weekend brought the not-so-secret announcement of Delaware Sen. Joe Biden as Barack Obama's running mate. Biden brings 35 years of Senate experience to the table. He has served as Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman for many years, which indicates his strong foreign policy record. He's tough in a lot of ways. He is honest and speaks the truth. But on the flip side, the addition of Biden to the Democratic ticket is all about experience, while Obama's campaign platform from the very beginning has centered around "change", the buzzword of this election season. Some voters might find it a bit contradictory, since Biden has served as a Senator for 35 years, even longer than Obama's opponent, Sen. John McCain. Also, during his own presidential campaign this past year, Biden was a vocal critic of Sen. Obama, citing his lack of experience and that "the presidency has no time for on the job training". Regardless of the differing opinions, Biden is an interesting choice. He is generally very articulate, but is known for saying whatever comes to mind. Due to this spontaneity, he has come under fire for some of the things he has said, especially during his campaign, like the Indian-American remark (which apparently was supposed to be a compliment), and about Obama being "the first African-American who's clean and articulate and a nice-looking guy". On a lighter note, I personally was a big fan of some of his rather amusing one-liners he delivered at many of last year's debates, particularly when he said: "Rudy Giuliani only mentions three things in a sentence: a noun, a verb, and 9/11." Anyhow, we'll see if this affects McCain's choice for his VP candidate. The Democratic National Convention kicks off today in Denver. Get ready for some big speeches and lots of confetti! (and a lot more, but I'm just keeping it simple) I'm not sure how much of the conventions I'm going to watch this election cycle. Last time, I watched both in a fairly detailed manner, but that was when I actually had free time. And plus, school's starting, so that complicates things. More on that later this week.
after that...who knows? I'm terrible at writing short fiction, so hopefully this story turns out all right.
I've had a couple late nights this week, due to watching the live swimming and gymnastics finals. Obviously, the big story is Michael Phelps, who is now 5 for 5 in gold medals, winning the 400 IM, 4x100 free relay, 200 free, 200 fly, and 4x200 free relay. The 4x100 was by far the most exciting of them all, with Jason Lezak barely edging out France's Alain Bernard. The US team won by 0.05 seconds, in one of the most exhilarating finishes I've ever seen. After the last turn, France was almost certainly going to win the gold, and Team USA looked like they had the silver in the bag. Adding to that, the French were quoted as saying they wanted to "smash" the Americans, and that's what they came to Beijing to do. But in the last lap, Bernard started to lag behind, giving Lezak the perfect chance to narrow France's substantial lead. I was literally on the edge of my seat as Lezak got closer and closer to Bernard. I jumped when they hit the wall, and the US had won! Awesome. Who's talking now, France?!?! Michael Phelps has made history: his 6 golds from Athens and 5 (so far) in Beijing = 11 career Olympic gold medals, the most of anybody ever. But, he's still on his quest to go 8 for 8, surpassing the great Mark Spitz's record of 7. He also attempted this 4 years ago in Athens, but won 6 golds and 2 bronze. Maybe he will prevail this time!
