Tag: live from beijing
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Olympic Spirit much like Christmas Spirit
BEIJING • The Olympic Spirit reminds me of the Christmas Spirit. For a couple of weeks, women and men, girls and boys try harder to be kind, patient, loving and generous. For a few days, the world is a little more sunny. It never lasts, but that’s part of the fun. Same way with the…
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U.S. upsets Brazil to win in men’s volleyball
BEIJING • Even gold couldn’t sooth the heartache. Not for Hugh McCutcheon, the happiest and saddest man of the Olympics. The U.S. men’s indoor volleyball team stunned Brazil 3-1 in Sunday’s gold-medal match at the Beijing Games, capping an emotional ride in which its coach’s father-in-law was stabbed to death at a local tourist site.…
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Winning decathlete’s exhaustion was top moment
BEIJING • Jason Lezak outreaching Alain Bernard was a sweet sight, probably the most amazing comeback I’ve ever seen with my own eyes. Usain Bolt said he was going to take it “to the world,” and he did. For a fitness nut, watching him run the 100, 200 and the 400-meter relay was amazing. There…
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Ramsey: U.S. men’s hoop victory the pinnacle
BEIJING – As the United States announced its basketball supremacy with a victory over Spain, NBA commissioner David Stern looked ready to leap with joy.He sat in the VIP section, not far from David Beckham, wearing a finely tailored suit along with huge smile. On the court, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade enjoyed a long…
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Bryant: Water polo team gives great effort to win silver
BEIJING • The immediacy of a loss is always painful.Lose in a gold-medal game or match and the pain only intensifies. Athletes who have combined with other athletes for years to work toward gold, never envision another metal, or, in this case, medal. Members of the U.S. water polo team had long, subdued faces after…
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Memorable Beijing Games come to a close
BEIJING • The flame went out with a whimper but the legacy created by a memorable Olympics in which China shouted itspresence to the world should last forever. Wild celebrations among thousands of athletes from a record 204 countries, performances by about 7,000 people and a graceful kick by David Beckham highlighted Sunday’s ending of…
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The incredible happens at Games – just wait
BEIJING • If you are blessed with a chance to attend the Olympics, don’t yearn for the incredible, don’t let the prospect of something special consume you. Sit back, show patience and let it happen. The incredible happiness and incredible heartbreak I witnessed in covering the Beijing Games – my first Olympics – wasn’t planned.…
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U.S. wins non-boycott Games record 110 medals
BEIJING • A major success by some standards, a big disappointment by others, but record-setting no matter which way you view it. That’s how the U.S. fared in the ultimate Olympic road test that ended Sunday, losing the gold-medal count 51-36 to China and winning the total-medal tally 110-100 over the suddenly powerful hosts of…
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U.S. 1,600 relay teams show dominance
BEIJING – First the American women held on. Then they caught up and surged ahead for a golden result. The men started out fast and just kept going, leaving no question about which country fields the best 1,600-meter runners on the planet. After catching deserved flak for dropping batons in the preliminaries of the 400…
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U.S. loses to Brazil in women’s volleyball final
BEIJING • Kim Glass served out of bounds. Logan Tom twice got a mouthful of volleyball and couldn’t find her touch.When four painful points were over, an improbable run also ended. The U.S. women’s indoor volleyball team was undersized, overpowered and simply outplayed Saturday in a 3-1 loss to Brazil in the gold-medal match at…