Olympics: Great unknowns shine for US
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 08:30:00 08/20/2008
BEIJING -- America saluted its great Olympic Games outsiders, including a son of illegal immigrants, in a four-gold run which kept them in second place in the Beijing medals table on Tuesday.
Dawn Harper defied the formbook to capture a shock 100m hurdles title, British-born sailor Anna Tunnicliffe won gold while Henry Cejudo, the son of illegal Mexican immigrants, completed his American dream by winning a freestyle wrestling title.
Gymnast Shawn Johnson finally added gold to her three silvers with victory in the women's balance beam.
By the end of the day, China had 43 golds in a total of 76; the US stood at 26 golds in a 79 total.
On the track, Harper won the women's 100m hurdles gold in 12.54 seconds, a personal best, with Australian Sally McLellan second in 12.64 and Canada's Priscilla Lopes-Schliep third on 12.64.
Compatriot Lolo Jones, who set the fastest time in the world this year in the semi-finals, stumbled over the penultimate hurdle while leading and finished seventh in 12.72.
"It was like racing a car at high velocity. When you hit a curve, you either maintain control of it or you crash and burn," said Jones.
"Today I crashed and burned."
Cejudo, 21, beat Japan's Asian champion Tomohiro Matsunaga for his first global wrestling crown in the freestyle 55kg final.
"I feel like I'm living the American dream," said the sixth of seven children. "The US is the land of opportunities and I am glad to represent it."
Tunnicliffe took gold in the Laser Radial yachting class, a one-woman dinghy division, ahead of favorite Gintare Volungeviciute of Lithuania.
"I'm very excited. This is phenomenal. It is absolutely unbelievable," said the gold medallist who was born in northern England but moved to the US when she was 12.
There was disappointment for world number one Sanya Richards in the women's 400m where bitter rival Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain produced a stunning late burst race to add Olympic gold to the world and Commonwealth crowns she already owns, winning in a time of 49.62seconds.
The 24-year-old Briton, who served a one year ban last year for missing three dope tests, beat home Shericka Williams of Jamaica while Richards only managed bronze.
In beach volleyball, defending women champions Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor registered their 107th consecutive win to reach the gold medal match.
Walsh and May-Treanor's 21-12, 21-14 win over Brazil's Talita Antunes and Renata Ribeiro gave them a final clash with China's Wang Jie and Tian Jia.
The United States easily defeated South Korea 104-60 to reach the women's basketball semi-finals while the country's baseball team, embroiled in so much controversy in the tournament, beat Taiwan 4-2 to ensure a semi-final spot.
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