6 olympics MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2012 DAILY

HOTONWEB

@MichaelPhelps “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” US swimmer , re-tweeting a Dr Seuss quote after ending his career with a 22nd Olympic medal

@LauraTrott31 “What a day!!! Olympic champion!!!! Thanks to everyone there today who has helped me along the way!! I love u all!! Oh and when my postbox is painted gold tweet me your pics with it :-) x” Britain’s Laura Trott, after winning the women’s cycling team pursuit, looks forward to the Royal Mail repainting a post box in her hometown to mark the occasion

@ranomikromo “Wahoooooooooooooooooo” Dutch swimmer tweets for joy after winning the women’s 50m freestyle gold

@Feng Zhe Xiaopang “I dared not eat ice cream and dessert in the past few days when I was preparing for the competition.” Chinese gymnast Feng Zhe

CUI MENG / CHINA DAILY @Woshishuangniu’er China’s Sun Yang reacts after he wins gold in the men’s 1,500m freestyle fi nal in a world record time at the Aquatics Centre of the London on Saturday. Sun clocked in at 14 “Sun Yang is too handsome!” minutes, 31.02 seconds. “This is the event I most wanted to win, and all my eff ort paid off at this moment,” he said. Chinese women’s basketball player Zhao Shuang on Sun winning the men’s 1,500m freestyle A leap forward for China’s @He Wenna

By TAN JINGJING in London and Ye won nearly half of China’s 10 medals in the 200m individual medley event. Xinhua the pool. Other Chinese swimmers also excelled at All of Sun’s four Olympic medals are histori- the London Games: China’s world champion When the curtain came down over the eight- cally signifi cant. won the women’s 200 butterfl y in day swimming competition at the London His opening day victory in the 400m freestyle Olympic record time, bagged a silver Olympics on Saturday, China had accomplished — he defeated Park Tae-hwan, his long-time in the women’s 100 butterfl y, and teenagers Li one major achievement: It placed second in the rival from — gave Sun the distinc- Xuanxu and pocketed two bronze med- “Happy birthday to you, my dear dad! medal tally. tion of being the fi rst Chinese male swimmer als in the 400 individual medley and 100 free. I love u! I wish to be your daughter The remarkable medal count represents a to claim an Olympic gold. His silver in the 200 Other notable Chinese swimming include again if there is another life.” Chinese gymnast He Wenna, breakthrough for Chinese swim- free was China’s fi rst Olympic medal in short Hao Yun, who placed fourth in the 400 free; who earned third place in the mers since Olympic doping scan- course swimming. Zhang Fenglin and his fourth place fi nish in the trampoline fi nals dals rocked the nation in the ’80s In the fi nal leg of the 4x200 freestyle relay, Sun MARK J. TERRILL / ASSOCIATED PRESS 200 ; and Chen Yin’s securing a spot and ’90s. took Team China from fi ft h to third place to China’s gestures after women’s in the fi nals for the 200 butterfl y. Th e epic triumph came when Sun Yang won bring China its fi rst medal in the event. 200m individual semifi nal It has been 20 years ago since the @Zhang Chenglong2012 on July 30. Ye stunned the world with double “In this Olympic Games, what I need the 1,500m freestyle final on the last day of His win in the 1,500 free, his signature event, individual medley gold medals. Olympics, when China took home four golds swimming, wiping more than three seconds marks the fi rst time a Chinese man set a world and fi ve silvers in swimming. Since then, there to do is to make you listen to more of the Chinese national anthem, March off his previous world record and winning by a record in swimming. able because she swam the last 50m faster than have only been three other Olympic champions: of the Volunteers.” whopping eight seconds. Ye, another Chinese star, stunned the world American ’s last leg in the men’s 100 free champion (); 100 but- Chinese gymnast Zhang Chenglong Sun and compatriot Ye Shiwen both clinched with a pair of individual medley golds and two individual medley. terfl y winner (); and 200 a pair of gold medals. China became the fi rst records — a world and an Olympic record — in Ye’s record swim of 4:28.43 was accomplished butterfl y champion (). @ country to have a man and woman swimmer her Olympic debut. in a textile suit, while Australian Team manager Xu Qi said the nation’s success “That’s too bad. I have developed again win a pair of golds at the Olympics. Th e 16-year-old smashed the world record got the previously held record of 4:29.45 in the in swimming at London ties directly to the State- a bad habit of eating instant noodles Sun, who secured two golds, one silver and in the women’s 400 individual medley by more age of polyester suits. She also smashed two scale sports system and its dedication to training each night! Wow … I’d better do some a bronze, is now a legitimate superstar. Both he than one second. It was all the more remark- Olympic records in the semifi nals and fi nals for and instilling confi dence in Chinese swimmers. embroidery and be a weaving girl.” Chinese Olympic shooting champion Yi Siling talks about her life

@Women’s Basketball player No 8 Record-breaking Phelps a champion for the ages Miao Miao “When I got back to the village, I met Liu Xiang. How great if I met you By JOHN MEHAFFEY in London tiple medalists. earlier. Your kindness has helped Reuters Phelps collected 22 medals after cure my stomach troubles. Wish starting Olympic life as a 15-year-old brother Xiang a good result in the competition.” Flashing a lopsided smile of satis- at the 2000 Olympics. Chinese basketball player Miao faction and relief, Michael Phelps left A distinguished quartet comprising Lijie on meeting the Olympic arena for the fi nal time track and fi eld athletes Carl Lewis and Chinese hurdler on Saturday aft er fi nishing his com- Paavo Nurmi, gymnast Larisa Latyni- Liu Xiang petitive career with a scarcely credible na and swimmer Mark Spitz won nine 18 gold medals. gold medals. Latynina, now 77, was in @ Th e boy from Baltimore, who had London to witness Phelps overtake her “A very harsh set out to redefine the boundaries previous overall total of 18. competition in of his sport, had succeeded beyond Aft er his fi nal race, Phelps accepted the Olympics! I’ve anybody’s expectations with twice a silver trophy from world govern- prepared 4 years as many Olympic titles as any other ing body FINA which described him for this day, but athlete in the modern Games. as the greatest Olympian of all time. today I seem to At the age of 27 he will move on, It is an accolade Phelps has never be a little unlucky. I cried, and smiled, secure in the knowledge he could not bestowed on himself and he was not I have tried everything! This is also a greatly valuable wealth in my life! have done any more in the sport that about to start on Saturday. Thanks for your support. I am OK now, became his life. “I have been able to become the I won’t cry anymore.” “I told myself that I never wanted best swimmer of all time,” he said. “I Chinese shooter Du Li on losing the to swim when I was 30,” he said. “I’ve said (to coach Bob Bowman) we have 50m rifl e been able to do everything I wanted, been able to get here together and I I’ve been able to achieve the goals I thanked him.” @TomDaley1994 wanted to achieve and I’ve managed Phelps has trained under Bowman CUI MENG / CHINA DAILY “Does everyone have #Olympicfever to do every single thing. It’s time for since he was 11 and there was plenty yet?” other things.” of emotion on both sides on Saturday. US swimmer Michael Phelps holds up a trophy after being honored as the most decorated Olympian at the Aquatics British diver Tom Daley on the Centre on Saturday. Phelps, the most accomplished all- “My fi rst memory of him running Olympic atmosphere around male swimmer ever, set his around the pool when kids were play- fourth in the 400m individual medley pressure off ,” Bowman said. “We said Franklin said. “And he’s kind of made sights high from the start. ing dressed in his own tiny , behind compatriot Ryan Lochte. ‘We might as well enjoy it because it people rethink the impossible — @chrishoy “Nothing is impossible,” he wrote playing games in the pool,” Bowman Lochte was immediately, and pre- doesn’t look as if it’s going to go too well. rethink what they can do and how “Does anybody remember a few days in his autobiography No Limits pub- said. maturely, hailed as the new face of “We should at least have fun while they can push themselves.” ago when some people were moaning lished aft er his record eight gold med- “Now he has a real perspective, American swimming but he began to we are here. But I do think that Asked to assess Phelps’ career, about lack of GB medals? Seems like als at the 2008 Beijing Games. back then the only perspective was fade while Phelps started to fl ourish. allowed us to relax a little bit and he Bowman said: “It’s not only the num- a long time ago now!” British cyclist Chris Hoy on “You can’t put a limit on anything. performance. And it was really focus- Beaten to the touch in the 200m started to swim well in the relays and ber of medals, it’s the quality. Eighteen Britain’s performance on Saturday Th e more you dream, the farther you ing on every detail we could. butterfl y, his signature event, Phelps kind of picked it up again.” out of 22 gold medals. Two silver, two with fi ve gold medals get. When I’m focused, there is not “But he was only focused on that, retained the 100 butterfly by sheer Tributes have been pouring in all bronze. World records. You can look one single thing, person, anything he didn’t have an appreciation for the force of will after he was seventh at week from other members of the US at all that. @MayorofLondon that can stand in the way of my doing bigger picture.” the turn. swimming team, including one from “I just think the quality of it is so “Forget about Super Saturday, this something.” Phelps’ final Olympic campaign A day earlier he had won the 200 17-year-old , another great, nobody can match that.” was Spectacular Saturday! What a Th e magnitude of Phelp’s achieve- aft er he dropped the 200 freestyle from individual medley title to become the multi-eventer who will take over the The aftermath for Phelps will night! So so proud.” ment as he quit the pool and entered his Beijing program and aimed for fi rst man to win three Olympic gold torch from Phelps for the 2016 Rio de start with traveling, some publicity London’s mayor Boris Johnson on the history books can be measured seven gold medals in London started medals in a row. Janeiro Games. appearances and plenty of rest and Britain’s spectacular performance by the list of the other Olympic mul- badly on July 28 when he finished “The first race (400 IM) took the “What he has done is incredible,” relaxation. Saturday