Aug. 11 (Bloomberg) -- A last-gasp relay victory maintained Michael Phelps's bid for a record eight Olympic titles in Beijing as five more world records fell in swimming and India got its first individual gold medal in Games history.Jason Lezak overtook Alain Bernard of France with his final stroke to win the 400-meter freestyle relay for the U.S. team and keep Phelps on course to surpass Mark Spitz's one-Games record of seven gold medals in 1972.
``It was unbelievable, Jason finished the race better than we could have asked for,'' Phelps told reporters at the Water Cube pool after winning his second gold medal at the Beijing Games. ``Jason in the last 50 was incredible.''
The relay win helped give the U.S. 12 total medals, one less than China, which heads the medals table with 13, including eight golds. China, hosting its first Olympics, is trying to end the U.S. run of three medal-topping Games. The U.S. has captured three gold medals in Beijing.
The relay win helped give the U.S. 12 total medals, one less than China, which heads the medals table with 13, including eight golds. China, hosting its first Olympics, is trying to end the U.S. run of three medal-topping Games. The U.S. has captured three gold medals in Beijing.
The winning relay time of 3 minutes, 8.24 seconds chopped almost four seconds off the world record the U.S. team set in qualifying yesterday. It also left Phelps within one win of tying the mark of nine career gold medals held by Spitz, Carl Lewis, Paavo Nurmi and Larissa Latynina. The 23-year-old races in the 200 freestyle tomorrow.
Records Abound
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima retained the 100 breaststroke gold in a world-record time of 58.91 seconds and can collect his fourth career Olympic title if he wins the 200 breaststroke.
``My performance was perfect and ideal,'' Kitajima, 25, told reporters. ``I would have been baffled if you do not say that was perfect.''
Australia's Libby Trickett won the women's 100 butterfly for her second career gold and Britain's Rebecca Adlington took the 400 freestyle for her first.
World records also went to Australia's Eamon Sullivan, whose relay lead-off leg of 47.24 seconds broke Bernard's mark and helped secure the bronze, and to Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe in a women's 100 backstroke semifinal.
Italy's Federica Pellegrini later broke the women's 200 freestyle in the evening heats, winning in 1:55.45 to shave 0.07 seconds off Frenchwoman Laure Manaudou's mark.
On Target
Abhinav Bindra wrote his name into Indian sports folklore by winning the men's 10-meter air rifle competition and upsetting silver medalist Zhu Qinan of China. He is the first athlete from his country of 1.1 billion people to win an individual gold medal in the 112 years of the Olympic Games.
``I was not thinking too much, I just tried to shoot well,'' Bindra, 25, told reporters at the Beijing Shooting Hall after ending a 28-year gold-medal wait since India's winning field hockey team at the Moscow Games.
China clinched its seventh gold medal when favorites Lin Yue and Huo Liang took the synchronized 10-meter platform title, aided by a messed-up attempt from their main Russian rivals in the second-last round that was met by cheers in the Water Cube.
The eighth gold came when Chen Yanqing won the 58-kilogram weightlifting title with an Olympic record combined total of 244 kilograms. That made her the first women's weightlifter to successfully defend an Olympic title.
Records Abound
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima retained the 100 breaststroke gold in a world-record time of 58.91 seconds and can collect his fourth career Olympic title if he wins the 200 breaststroke.
``My performance was perfect and ideal,'' Kitajima, 25, told reporters. ``I would have been baffled if you do not say that was perfect.''
Australia's Libby Trickett won the women's 100 butterfly for her second career gold and Britain's Rebecca Adlington took the 400 freestyle for her first.
World records also went to Australia's Eamon Sullivan, whose relay lead-off leg of 47.24 seconds broke Bernard's mark and helped secure the bronze, and to Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe in a women's 100 backstroke semifinal.
Italy's Federica Pellegrini later broke the women's 200 freestyle in the evening heats, winning in 1:55.45 to shave 0.07 seconds off Frenchwoman Laure Manaudou's mark.
On Target
Abhinav Bindra wrote his name into Indian sports folklore by winning the men's 10-meter air rifle competition and upsetting silver medalist Zhu Qinan of China. He is the first athlete from his country of 1.1 billion people to win an individual gold medal in the 112 years of the Olympic Games.
``I was not thinking too much, I just tried to shoot well,'' Bindra, 25, told reporters at the Beijing Shooting Hall after ending a 28-year gold-medal wait since India's winning field hockey team at the Moscow Games.
China clinched its seventh gold medal when favorites Lin Yue and Huo Liang took the synchronized 10-meter platform title, aided by a messed-up attempt from their main Russian rivals in the second-last round that was met by cheers in the Water Cube.
The eighth gold came when Chen Yanqing won the 58-kilogram weightlifting title with an Olympic record combined total of 244 kilograms. That made her the first women's weightlifter to successfully defend an Olympic title.
by:Grant Clark
Source:http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news
