The Olympics Blog» Swimming, The Olympics Blog,

Oussama Mellouli: Tunisia’s Olympic Hero

bill — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:38:00 +0000

I got busy doing some other stuff so I wasn’t able to update this blog during the Olympics but this doesn’t mean that I will stop blogging about our Olympic champions

Our fist post-Olympic post would be about Oussama Mellouli, winner of the 1,500 meter race in swimming, who went home to Tunisia and was deservedly welcomed as a hero. Good for him!

Here’s what Oussama says about his Olympic victory:

“I return to Tunisia carrying not just a medal, but a gold medal. It’s the gold medal that all Tunisians have been waiting for. Thank God I did what I’m supposed to do, and even more.”

This is a comeback of sorts for Oussama since, as you may already know, he was banned in 2007 for taking Adderall, an amphetamine for ADD medication which is reportedly being used by students who are cramming for exams. Oussama claims that he took in the substance to help himself in writing a term paper not to gain any advantage over other swimmers.

Photo sources: Associated Press; Beijing2008; and magharebia

Michael Phelps’ Girlfriend?

bill — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 21:48:00 +0000

Michael Phelps made out with Stephanie Rice. So she must be his girlfriend. According to the gossip mongers of Page Six anyways.

Michael Phelps doesn’t have a girlfriend, but he celebrated his record-breaking eight gold medals in Beijing by sneaking off for a sizzling game of tonsil hockey with one of Australia’s hottest Olympians.

Phelps, fresh from shattering Mark Spitz’s 36-year-old record, was spotted Monday night in a hot make-out session with Down Under swimmer Stephanie Rice, a source tells The Post’s Clemente Lisi and Luke Dennehy. The pumped-up pair clinched and swapped spit at a celebratory bash outside the Olympic Village.

The Baltimore Bullet swooped in for the lip-lock with the 20-year-old brunette just weeks after she split from Aussie swimmer Eamon Sullivan. “All the swimmers are talking about it, and [Sullivan] is cut up about what happened,” the source said.

The day after the face-sucking frolics, Phelps and Rice cheekily posed together for Speedo – laughing and playfully groping each other as a photographer snapped them in their swimsuits. “I definitely admire him for his athletic ability and everything he’s achieved,” gushed Rice, who won three gold medals of her own. “I’m just really glad to be in the mix with that.”

Read more. Does this mean that Stephanie’s grandfather is mistaken when he was quoted as saying that she didn’t split up with fellow Aussie Eamon Sullivan?

More Tears of Joy From Cesar Augusto Cielo Filho

bill — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 23:30:00 +0000

World’s fastest 50 meters freestyle swimmer Cesar Augusto Cielo Filho is Brazil’s favorite son and this blog’s favoritest crying Olympian. So even though I posted about his awesome crying earlier, here’s other awesome pictures of him.
Related:
Cesar Filho Cielo: The Crying Olympian
Filho Cielo is Number One

Photo: chinadaily

Phelps Bags Seventh Gold, the U.S.’s 15th

bill — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 07:20:00 +0000

Isn’t it interesting that almost half of the gold medal harvest of the United States is produced (or co-produced) by Michael Phelps? Here’s the merman celebrating after winning his seventh gold medal in the men’s 100 meters butterfly.

Photo source: beijing 2008

Kirsty Coventry Gets Her Cherry on Top

bill — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Kudos to Kirsty Coventry for coming up with a nice description for her gold medal in the 200 meters backstroke, i.e., a “cherry on top”.

Would it be safe to assume that some children in her native Zimbabwe will be named “Cherry” or, the more interesting, “Cherryontop” to honor Kirsty’s victory? After all, when she won three medals in Athens 2004, many Zimbabwean babies were named “Kirsty”, “Coventry”, “Goldmedal”, and “Threemedals”.

Photo source: xinhua

Rebecca Adlington Bags Second Gold Medal

bill — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 06:20:00 +0000

Rebecca Adlington of Great Britain breaks the oldest world record in swimming (women’s 800 meters freestyle) and earns herself her second gold medal (and Great Britain’s fourth).

Photo source: beijing2008

Filho Cielo is Number One

bill — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 03:35:00 +0000

His fingers say it all, Filho Cielo is number one. He bagged Brazil’s first gold medal in Beijing after he ruled the men’s 50m freestyle.

Whatever happened to Australia’s Eamon Sullivan? Anyways, congratulations to Filho Cielo.

Photo source: gettyimages/beijing2008

Germany’s Britta Steffen is 100m Freestyle Queen

bill — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:48:00 +0000

Britta Steffen’s playfulness in the swimming pool didn’t hurt her Olympic bid as she out-swam her opponents to bag the gold medal in the 100 meters freestyle. Britta’s victory brings up Germany’s gold medal haul to eight as of posting.

Photos courtesy of weltonline and stern.de

America’s Gold Medal # 13 Courtesy of Michael Phelps

bill — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:22:00 +0000

Merman Michael Phelps got himself another gold medal [12th overall] which brings the U.S. total gold to 13. This is probably the most productive day for the U.S. in the swimming pool. No response yet from China as of this posting.

By the way, that’s Ryan Lochte (gold medalist in the 200 meter backstroke and bronze medalist in the 200 meter individual medley) with Michael in the AP file photo above. Nice head touching, no? But don’t you dare do that when you are in Thailand, Mr. Phelps. Head touching is a no, no there even if you are the “greatest Olympian evah”.

Photo source: AP via ESPN

Ryan Lochte is 200m Backstroke Champ

bill — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:01:00 +0000

As I mentioned earlier, the gold medal race between China and the U.S. is now getting exciting. It’s been a bit boring for sometime with the U.S. stuck at 10 gold medals while China attacked in all fronts winning 22 gold medals.

But it’s now 12 golds for the United States following Ryan Lochte’s victory in the 200 meter backstroke. [The 11th came from Rebecca Soni.] Congratulations to you Ryan. Make sure you bite your gold so we will include you in our list of gold medal biters.