By Jo-Ann Barnas, Detroit Free Press –
Thank you, Michael Phelps.
Perhaps the most sought-after ticket of the Summer Games will be swimming on July 31, the likely date when Phelps has a chance (in about a one-hour span, no less) to tie and then break the Olympic all-time record for most medals should he reach the finals of the 200-meter butterfly and 800 freestyle relay .
Of course, we’re assuming here that Phelps — who enters his fourth Games with 16 medals (14 gold, two bronze), second to the 18 won by former Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina across three Games (1956-64) — will have already captured medals No. 17 on July 28, in the 400-meter IM, and No. 18 on July 29, as a member of the U.S. 400 free relay.
When Phelps breaks the record — and with seven opportunities, I have no question he’ll do it — it’ll be a milestone moment in Olympic history.
To me, though, Phelps earned the title of Best Olympian Ever four years ago, when he went a perfect eight-for-eight in his finals, winning all gold medals. Phelps was at his astonishingly best then; we’re in overtime now.
If I had just one chance in London to watch Phelps compete, I’d go against the flow: I wouldn’t pick July 31, or whatever date it’ll be when he breaks the all-time Olympic medal record.
I’d rather have a seat on Aug. 4, the last day of swimming.
Assuming that Team USA’s men’s 400-meter medley relay team advances to the finals, that race will likely be Phelps’ last as an Olympian. I’d like to be at the pool when he waves good-bye.
So let’s sit back and enjoy his eight competition days of his fourth and final Olympics. At the Indianapolis Grand Prix a few months ago, he told me he planned to return this fall to Ann Arbor for a football game at Michigan Stadium, a short walk from where he trained at Canham Natatorium in the four years leading to the 2008 Beijing Games. What a halftime celebration that could be for Phelps, and the other Olympians with ties to U-M.
Blade Runner gets his due
Roughly a half-hour separates the first-round heats of the men’s 100-meter dash and the men’s 400-meter run on Aug. 4 at the London Olympic Stadium.
The first features sprinter Usain Bolt. Four years ago in Beijing, the lanky Jamaican became the first man to break world records while winning gold medals in the 100 and 200 — and in the 400 relay — at the same Games.
But on this day at the track, a bigger story will take place after Bolt’s 100 prelims. It will happen when double amputee Oscar Pistorius of South Africa takes the starting blocks in his 400 heat in a field of able-bodied men and becomes the first athlete with a prosthetic device to take part in the Olympics.
Pistorius has spent almost his entire life without lower legs; he was born without fibulas. He’s known as the Blade Runner because he races on carbon fiber blades.
In addition to the 400, Pistorius will also compete on South Africa’s 1,600 relay (he was part of his nation’s silver-medal relay team at last year’s world championships). He also plans to defend his three titles at the Paralympic Games in London after the Olympics.
“I am very excited that Oscar will be competing in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London,” said Cheryl Angelelli, four-time Paralympic swimming medalist and director of marketing for the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan. “If all the testing and evidence proves that his prosthetic legs do not present an unfair advantage then, yes, I do believe he should be allowed to compete. I do think that Oscar is in a no-win situation. If he wins gold there will always be those critics and athletes who will say he didn’t deserve it because he had an unfair advantage.
“I do find it ironic that there is so little U.S. media coverage of the Paralympics, yet Oscar’s story is turning out to be one of the biggest stories of this year’s Games and no doubt will become one of the biggest attractions in London. It’s my sincere hope that Oscar’s Olympic debut helps create a better awareness of the Paralympics and changes the stereotypes and perceptions of what can be achieved by someone with a disability.”
The Jordyn and Sam Show
I was in gymnastics, briefly, in my youth, inspired after sitting in front of the TV and watching Olga Korbut’s beauty on the balance beam during the 1972 Olympics.
Forty years after my last back handspring (I could only land them, cheated, on a downward slope on my neighbor’s lawn in Livonia), I’ll be taking the Tube to the North Greenwich Arena to cover two Michigan-based gymnasts, both of whom are crucial to the success of their respective Olympic teams.
University of Michigan junior Sam Mikulak won the U.S. bronze medal at nationals last month, and he should be among the athletes selected in the three-up, three-count competition format for the men’s team final July 30 — providing his ankles hold up.
The next day, assuming all goes according to plan there as well, women’s world all-around champion Jordyn Wieber of DeWitt will be leading the U.S. women in their team finals.
Both U.S. squads are considered contenders for the team gold, but history hasn’t been on their side.
The U.S. women haven’t won Olympic team gold since 1996 in Atlanta. They’ve been silver medalists to China (2008) and Romania (2004) the last two Summer Games .
For the American men, their gold-medal drought stretches to 1984. Many of the gymnasts on that dynamic team remain household names today — Bart Conner, Tim Daggett, Mitch Gaylord and Peter Vidmar.
In London, Wieber and Mikulak have a chance to leave their mark; one is a homegrown athlete from mid-Michigan (Wieber), the other a California kid who won the NCAA title as a U-M freshman in 2011 (Mikulak).
Together they could bring even more notoriety for a state not known for its gymnastic prowess.
Until now.
Women taking the lead
I’ve never been into keeping score at the Olympics — especially when it pertains to medal counts.
Four years ago in Beijing, the U.S. won more overall medals than any other nation: 110. China was second with 100.
But the Chinese won more golds (51) than the Americans (36) .
What do those numbers mean, really?
There are a couple of statistics, though, that I think are extremely significant heading into the Summer Games: 269 and 261.
That’s the breakdown by gender of the 530-member U.S. Olympic team . For the first time in Olympic history, London’s Team USA features more female athletes than men.
Happy 40th anniversary, Title IX.
Interesting — the year of the landmark legislation was 1972. At Munich Games that summer, the U.S. sent a team of 400 — only 84 of whom were women. So what has been the pendulum swinger for London? Team participation — particularly, soccer and field hockey.
The U.S. men failed to qualify for the London in both of those sports, while the women are medal favorites in each.
Abby Wambach and Hope Solo lead the 18-member U.S. women’s soccer roster. Meanwhile, the 16 members of the U.S. women’s field hockey team are still riding high after winning the gold medal last fall at the Pan American Games by beating Argentina.
And on the global stage, another first: When Saudi Arabia agreed to send two women to compete in London, it will mark the first time that all 200-plus participating nations in the Games will have female athletes.
Lots to celebrate all around.
