topics
tools
Expatica countries
Index Last Var.(%)
BEL 20 2117.66 -0.08
DAX 6323.19 -0.26
IBEX 30 6401.2 -2.17
CAC 40 3042.97 -0.16
FTSE 100 5356.34 0.09
AEX 292.76 0.00
DJIA 12454.83 -0.60
Nasdaq 2837.53 -0.07
FTSE MIB 13057.26 -0.74
TSX Composite 11566.15 -0.09
ASX 4120.2 0.96
Hang seng 18800.99 0.47
Straits Times 2787.22 0.52
ISEQ 20 501.76 0.16
You are here: Home News Dutch News US strikes back in pool as Phelps joins Olympic elite...

Dutch News

archive
Enlarge font Decrease font Text size


12/08/2008US strikes back in pool as Phelps joins Olympic elite with ninth gold

Michael Phelps becomes the fifth person in Olympic history to win nine Gold medals with his victory in the 200m freestyle.

12 August 2008

BEIJING - US superstar Michael Phelps won the 200m freestyle in world record time Tuesday making him only the fifth Olympian in history to have won nine golds.
It was one of three gold medals won by the USA and means Phelps needs just one more from five events to become the all-time record holder in gold medals at the Olympic Games.

Away from the Water Cube China secured the men's team gold in the artistic gymnastics event and in the women's synchronised diving to stay top of the overall medals table, while South Korea notched its fifth gold with victory in the 50m pistol.

Phelps, 23, edged closer to his goal of winning eight golds in Beijing by winning the 200m freestyle in 1 minute 42.96 seconds, beating South Korean Park Tae-Hwan (1:44.85) and American Peter Vanderkaay (1:45.14) into second place and third place.

He joins Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, Finnish athlete Paavo Nurmi, US swimmer Mark Spitz and US athlete Carl Lewis on nine Olympic golds and will be the first to 10 if he wins tomorrow's 200m butterfly.

He went on to equal the 200m butterfly Olympic record in heats before saying: "I will have plenty of pasta and pizza and then try to get as much rest as I can."

"I am fortunate to have a free session on Tuesday afternoon. Tomorrow is a big morning with two finals."

The other US golds came with Aaron Peirsol winning the men's 100m breaststroke in world record time and Natalie Coughlin winning the women's 100m backstroke.

Coughlin, who was in tears as she received her gold medal, said that she could not believe she had won.

"It hasn't really sunk in yet. When I first saw the time I thought they had made a mistake. It was a very fast time. When I saw the one by my name I thought they had made a mistake. Then I saw my name there and I realised that I'd got it."

Australian Leisel Jones set an Olympic record when she won the 100m breaststroke and Zimbabwean Kirsty Coventry set an Olympic record in the semi-finals of the women's 200m individual medley.

Meanwhile China stayed top of the medal table with gold for Wang Xin and Chen Ruolin in the women's synchronised 10m platform dive and in the men's team artistic gymnastics event.

The host nation finished well clear of the rest of the eight-man field at the National Indoor Stadium with a winning points total of 286.125 for the six disciplines.

Japan finished a distant second on 278.875, while the United States beat off the challenge of Germany to take bronze thanks to a score of 275.850.

In shooting, South Korea's Jin Jong Oh improved on his 2004 silver by winning the Olympic pistol competition and the US's Walton Eller won the men's Double Trap.

[dpa / Expatica]

What are your views on the Olympic Games? Will you be supporting your country or host country? Click here to take part in a survey compiled by Expatica in cooperation with Ruigrok | NetPanel.


0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment

General rating: Not rated yet

Rate article:    Add my rating



0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment
Discussion Forums

Relocating to the Netherlands

Taxation on Rental Apartments!

Housing in the Netherlands

Taxation on Rental Appartments?

Discuss Dutch Culture

High-quality fake passports, driver's licenses, ID

English in the Netherlands

Moved to Hengelo

Travel & Transport in the Netherlands

Buy fake passports, driver's licenses, identity cards

participate in the forums

Inside Expatica
Setting up home in the Netherlands

Setting up home in the Netherlands

A guide to telephone, internet and television along with utility services water, electricity and gas in the Netherlands.

Dutch immigration and residency regulations

Dutch immigration and residency regulations

Lost in the Dutch immigration system? Look no further than this guide compiled for our Survival Guide 2012.

A brief introduction to the Netherlands

A brief introduction to the Netherlands

Expatica offers a whistle-stop tour of life in the modern Netherlands.

Giving birth in the Netherlands

Giving birth in the Netherlands

The challenges and benefits of the maternity system in the Netherlands and how it differs to other countries.