Without Bolt, the final week of the last three Olympics would have been an endless loop of beach volleyball and hoops and wishing Michael Phelps or America’s latest gold-medal gymnast competed in those events, too.
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And together with the rest of the 4×100-meter relay team, she brought the United States closer to its biggest medal haul in decades.
The United States women’s sprint team brilliantly beat Jamaica to complete a remarkable comeback from disqualification.
– The U.S. women’s basketball team captured gold for a sixth consecutive time by rolling to a 101-72 rout of Spain.
The US team of Allyson Felix, Tianna Bartoletta, Tori Bowie and English Gardner clocked 41.04 seconds, beating Jamaica by 0.35 seconds. But they were disqualified afterward when officials ruled that one of their baton exchanges was outside the legal zone.
The drawback was they were given the worst lane of all, Lane 1, which has the tightest corners.
Bolt raised his baton to the heavens as he crossed the line before embracing his team-mates, also including Asafa Powell and Yohan Blake, before the quartet set off on a lap of honour, draped in Jamaican flags.
Despite coming into Rio with concerns over his fitness, the superstar crowd pleaser romped to a “triple triple” of gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m.
As so often, Felix’s celebrations were mostly muted but her smile told it all.
“Adversity sometimes makes you stronger”, she said.
“We didn’t get the record but we’re happy with the win and be a part of history also”.
She entered the games as one of just six women to have won four golds in track and field.
Ask Brazilians what gold medal matters the most to them at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the answer is unequivocal: soccer.
It was not all perfection for the Americans though.
Mo Farah of Britain became the first runner in 40 years to win back-to-back long-distance doubles at the Olympics, taking gold in the men’s 5,000 meters after winning the 10,000. Japanese anchorman Aska Cambridge held off the Americans, who were later disqualified for an exchange outside the zone in what has nearly become a USA tradition by now.
One team that has won loads of gold in its sport is the US women’s basketball team.
South Korea’s Park In-Bee goes into the last day of the women’s golf -returning to the Olympics after 112 years – with a two stroke lead over New Zealand’s world number one Lydia Ko. The 100 meter, the 200 meter and the 4×100 meter, achieving a total of nine gold medals. The Americans took home 32 medals, their highest total since winning 40 at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. “I am both”, he said.
When Bolt added a third 200m gold to his collection, Bennett added: ‘This level of pride is unfathomable’.
Bolt set his first 100m world record (9.72sec) in May 2008 in NY.
His mother seems to think that the young Bolt, who will retire after next year’s world championships, was born to run.
Sweden’s Peder Fredricson aboard All In took silver with the only other clear round of the jump-off, while Canada’s Eric Lamaze and Fine Lady 5 earned bronze. I have shown I was always going to be great. But the efforts of the Olympic week appeared to catch up with her as she slumped late in the Saturday night race.
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“I think he should show more respect for his competitors and shake hands, give a tap on the shoulder to the other ones immediately after the finish and not make gestures like the one he made in the 100 metres”. Cheruiyot’s Kenyan teammate Hellen Onsando Obiri took silver as Ayana faded.
