The three-time all-around world champion took the gold medal with a total score of 62.198 points.
Advertisement
Already Sir Bradley Wiggins has won a gold medal at these games. As the 100 meters heats begin, American Justin Gatlin and fellow Jamaican Johan Blake will try to rain on Bolt’s parade.
If the medal were to be melted down, and taking current market rates into consideration, it would yield $587 worth of precious metals.
And with the bulk of the track and field to come, along with boxing, canoeing and sailing – sports where GB won medals in 2012 – who’s to say the final tally won’t be up with four years ago.
It was the third time in the space of 48 hours that the quartet of Katie Archibald, Laura Trott, Elinor Barker and Joanna Rowsell-Shand had set a new world mark in the 4km race. It was her third gold medal.
If the USA women had not captured the landmark medal, Michael Phelps and the men’s 4×100 medley relay squad would have done so, the quartet winning gold in the very next event in the pool. The red, white and blue have more than double the total medals (2,400+) as the closest competitor, Russian Federation (1,000+).
Elsewhere, Nick Dempsey was pipped to the post on a gold medal in the men’s RS:X windsurfing final, but the Weymouth-born athlete managed to secure his second successive silver medal – a day after his 36th birthday. To a thunderous crowd, Phelps stormed to the gold medal in the men’s 200m individual medley and became the first swimmer to win the same event at four consecutive Olympics. Today’s medals only contain about 1.34% gold.
In the Rio Olympic Arena, Virginia Beach native Gabby Douglas – who became a household name after her accomplishments in the 2012 London Games – helped the powerhouse Final Five on their quest for another team gold Tuesday.
Simone Manuel capped off the evening with a stunning performance in the women’s 100m freestyle final, which saw her claim co-gold -and set a new Olympic record- with Canada’s Penny Oleksiak.
It would make Rio Britain’s most successful overseas Olympics ever beating the 47 medals in Beijing 2008.
1,000th or not, it’s still an epic feat from the American athletes. Replacing technology with old fashion hand sculpting and precision tools, the molds bears the love, care, and pride which is then reflected in the medals.
But with the world’s top four stars missing, it has given an opportunity for others.
The only other Brits competing on the day were Alain Sign and Dylan Fletcher in the 49er class.
Team GB’s women’s hockey side go into Monday’s quarter-final fresh from completing the ideal pool stage campaign after a 2-1 win over the United States of America made it five from five for Danny Kerry’s side.
Advertisement
Nathan Bailey was ninth overall in the men’s trampoline event in Rio and weightlifter Sonny Webster finished sixth in Group B of the -94kg weightlifting after recording a total of 333kg from his 148kg snatch and 185kg clean and jerk.
