U.S. Finishes Olympics On Top

By Brendon Rosenau
Love of Sports Correspondent

Samuel Kamau Wansiru of Kenya won gold in the men’s marathon, signifying the end of the 29th Olympiad.

There were 958 medals handed out in 38 sports over the past 16 days. We saw medals in new sports like BMX cycling, classic Olympic standards like track and field and obscure events like the trampoline. When the dust (or smog) settled, and the final medals were counted, the U.S.A. proudly stood on top.

The U.S. won 110 overall medals, leaving the host Chinese (100 medals) to settle for second. China did win more gold medals, 51-36, but the U.S. finished with 38 silvers to China’s 21 and a 36-28 edge in bronze. Russia was the only other country with more than 50 medals, finishing with 72. The cream always rises to the top, and the U.S. is certainly the king of athletics.

Redemption Song

Free throw shooting and three point shooting were supposed to be the downfall of the men’s basketball team. Instead, when faced with their first real challenge in Beijing, it was those two areas that led the U.S. to a 118-107 win over Spain and the Gasol brothers.

The U.S. shot 73% (27-37) from the line and made 46% (13-28) from downtown in the final game. When Spain went to a zone, and when the U.S. needed to ice the game, the best players in the world stepped up. Late in the fourth quarter, it all came together.

Kobe Bryant converted a sick four-point play to put the U.S. up by nine. Then Spain impressively cut the lead to four before Dwyane Wade drained a triple and Chris Paul sank two freebies to push the lead into double digits. So much for an Achilles’ heel.

Some people ripped the Redeem Team tag, and several others were highly critical of the team before and during the Games. These same people will likely still be unimpressed with the gold medal showing. After all, aren’t the Americans supposed to dominate basketball?

The NBA has a sour reputation with many casual sports fans. Fans who tune in just to watch the Olympics. When these people look at the U.S. basketball team they see the braids and the tattoos. They think of trash talking and selfish playground basketball. They think of the them as nothing more than a bunch of thugs. Maybe U.S. Olympic basketball deserved that reputation in the past. Maybe not. The bottom line is that this team was about one thing, and one thing only … playing for the greatest country of all.

The country that gave them an opportunity to make millions upon millions for playing a game. They all played, from LeBron James down to Michael Redd, for the pride of the United States of America.

Don’t believe me? Watch the medal ceremony. Check out Carmelo Anthony, one of the toughest players in the league, a player most people just don’t like. Watch him get his well deserved gold medal and wipe a tear from his face. Now tell me these guys don’t have care.

Gold Standard

Few of us will ever know what it’s like to compete for a gold medal. The intense pressure that comes with knowing everything you’ve worked and sacrificed for has come down to one final moment.

Hopefully, even fewer of us will know the pressure, the sadness, the anger and the feeling of hopelessness that comes when a tragedy strikes your family. Hugh McCutcheon was dealing with all those emotions, and he was dealing with them at the same time.

Just two weeks after his father-in-law was senselessly killed in Beijing, McCutcheon led the U.S. to a gold medal in men’s volleyball. He was the mastermind behind a ingenious game plan that left heavily favored Brazil holding silver.

It’s safe to say McCutcheon and his team weren’t the least bit fazed when they stared across the court and saw the Brazilians. After dropping the first set, the U.S. didn’t hit the panic button. Instead, they won the next three games, getting a huge spike from Clayton Stanley (13 kills, two aces) or a block from David Lee (five blocks) whenever they needed it most.

In the end, McCutcheon walked quickly off the court, a flood of emotions coursing through his exhausted mind. The U.S. had won gold. They had gone undefeated in nine games. Twice they stared elimination squarely in the face and didn’t even blink. They are world champions, and nothing can take that away.

Just Short

The U.S. finished with a silver medal in men’s water polo after a 14-10 loss to Hungary. It was the third silver medal for the men‘s team in the water, and their first since 1988. They’ve never won gold. At the recent world championships, the U.S. finished ninth, so a medal in Beijing seemed unlikely. Tony Azevedo finished the tournament with 17 goals, which was the fourth-best total in the Games. Goalie Merrill Moses was one of the best keepers, saving almost 60% of the shots he faced.

That’s it from the 2008 Olympics. Coming up, I’ll have a complete recap of the best moments from this year’s Games.

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