LONDON (AP) — Around the 2012 Olympics and its host city with journalists from The Associated Press bringing the flavor and details of the games to you: ___ FANCY FOOTWORK Running, jumping and swimming are all fine, but who will win Olympic gold for celebratory dancing? These games have offered some shining examples, from boxer Claressa Shields' combination jig-and-fist bump to Serena Williams' "Crip Walk" on center court at Wimbledon. My bronze dancing medal goes to Kenyan runner Ezekiel Kemboi, who celebrated steeplechase gold with a hip-swiveling, arm-shaking peacock dance. Silver goes to German discus thrower Robert Harting. On winning gold, the behemoth roared, ripped his shirt to shreds like the Incredible Hulk, grabbed a German flag, ran a lap of the track over the hurdles and then tried to wrench one of the burning torches from the Olympic cauldron. Not so much a dance as a force of nature. The gold medal is awarded to — who's surprised? — Usain Bolt, for his supremely confident response to winning the 200 meters on Thursday. The self-proclaimed living legend glided across the finish line, placed an index finger to his lips in a silent reproach to those who had doubted him, then dropped to the track and did some push-ups. The crowd went wild. — Jill Lawless http://Twitter.com/JillLawless PADDLE PARTY For anyone who missed the U.S. women's eight rowing to a second straight Olympic gold medal last week, there was another chance. Sort of. The women took to the water in paddleboats for an appearance Friday in London's Regents Park, dressed in USA gear and wearing the gold medals around their necks. "You get to see us now!" Susan Francia said with a smile before getting into the boat. — Janie McCauley — Twitter http://twitter.com/janiemccAP ___ FLAT CHUCK A television crew from NBC affiliate WTHR in Indianapolis has been toting around its meteorologist for the entire games. Or, at least, one version of its meteorologist. The crew is trying to get as many athletes and celebrities as possible to pose with a cutout of Chuck Lofton. On Thursday, entertainer Ryan Seacrest went along with the gag. Looking into the television camera as he held out the miniature picture of Lofton, the diminutive Seacrest told the meteorologist, "Chuck, you might be bigger than me." Check out Flat Chuck with swimmer Allison Schmidt here: http://pic.twitter.com/A5T27mkU — Jenna Fryer — Twitter http://twitter.com/jennafryer ___ PARTY IN FLINT Claressa Shields' hometown of Flint, Michigan, has been celebrating this week after the teen boxing sensation punched her way to an Olympic gold medal. Mayor Dayne Walling and City Councilman Bryant Nolden invited city residents to a local bar to watch the 17-year-old's gold medal match against Nadezda Torlopova of Russia. Shields won the middleweight bout 19-12 Shields' father, Clarence, was among the about 200 people who attended the free viewing event in downtown Flint. He took to a knee to pray after watching his daughter receive her medal. The mayor said "the atmosphere was electric" as people watched a young product of the struggling community's schools and youth sports programs reach the peak of her craft. — David N. Goodman — Twitter: http://twitter.com/davidngoodman ___ A YEAR'S TRANSFORMATION One year ago, Woolwich was ablaze. The southeast London town was consumed by summer riots that destroyed shops, horrified locals and left Olympics organisers aghast. Now the only flames burning in Woolwich are those of the Olympic cauldron, beamed from a giant TV screen across the tranquil town square. It's a world away from last year's violence. Residents sit on clipped lawns, surrounded by floral borders, captivated by the live broadcast of games events in their back yard. Hundreds of spectators have gathered here to cheer Usain Bolt on. On the face of it, multi-cultural Woolwich is a shining example of what organizers hope the Olympic Games will bring to London's most deprived areas. But there's also fear that the economic cracks and despair have only been papered over. When the inspiring Olympic athletes go home and the London 2012 banners come down, will there be enough hope left so the youths who felt compelled to smash windows and raid businesses don't do so again? Stay tuned. — Toby Goode — Twitter http://twitter.com/tobyjgoode __ GATOR PRIDE If athletes from the University of Florida comprised their own country in the Olympics, they'd give many nations a run for their money. Gator athletes had another big day Thursday, when triple jumpers Christian Taylor and Will Claye won gold and silver, soccer players Abby Wambach and Heather Mitts were part of the U.S. women's gold medal winning squad and Melanie Booth of Canada got bronze on her national team's effort. The triple jumpers, Wambach and swimmers Ryan Lochte and Conor Dwyer reveled in the Gator success on Friday and posed for pictures together doing the trademark Gator chomp. "Gator nation is the best," says Lochte, winner of five swimming medals in London. "We've worked hard. I've personally seen most of the athletes working out. We push our bodies to the limit and that's why we did so well." He continued: "And you know what? We're like a big family so we always help each other out. No matter what sport it is, we come together and work toward the goal." — Jenna Fryer — Twitter http://twitter.com/jennafryer __ BUSFUL OF TALENT On Friday morning, the USOC loaded a double-decker bus with American medalists for a television appearance. Aboard the bus were the gold medal women's soccer and water polo teams, decathletes Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee and swimmers Ryan Lochte and Conor Dwyer. In otherwards, lots and lots of American talent. "It's crazy being here with all these medalists. And being with guys like Ryan, who has five, it makes it seem like one isn't all that much. But it's been such an experience. It's just been a joyride," says Dwyer, a member of Michael Phelps' record-breaking gold medalist relay team. — Jenna Fryer — Twitter http://twitter.com/jennafryer __ RIO RAMPS UP As the London Games wind to a close, Rio is ramping up. Leonardo Gryner, head of the Rio organizers, says they are "transforming the whole city" for the 2016 Summer Games. "All of the construction is on time," Gryner says. "All of the sports venues will be completed by 2015 in time for full test events for each competition." — Jon Krawczynski — Twitter http://twitter.com/APKrawczynski __ LOVE FEST The U.S. women's soccer team was gushing with goodwill on Friday, a day after beating Japan in the Olympic final. The team avenged a deeply-felt loss to Japan in the 2011 World Cup, but midfielder Lauren Cheney said there was no animosity heading into the rematch. "On the gold medal stand, we were all just saying how much we love Japan and how much fun they are to play," Cheney said. "We have so much respect for them and they always play us well and play a great game." But their admiration for the Japanese was nothing compared to their own camaraderie. "There's so much love, we tell each other that all the time but it's so genuine and it's so much fun to be around each other," Cheney said. "To know that's our last time to play, we are just going to enjoy it as much as we can." — Jenna Fryer — Twitter http://twitter.com/jennafryer __ PHELPS NO COUCH POTATO So, no lazing around watching daytime TV for Michael Phelps. "First workout in retirement ... Painful but good way to end the day after 3hours of beach volleyball!!!" the 18-time Olympic gold medalist tweeted Friday. — Fergus Bell — Twitter http://twitter.com/fergb ___ MORE OLYMPIC WOMEN The gender balance at the Summer Olympics is changing. The International Olympic Committee says Thursday that 44 percent of the athletes competing in London are women. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, women made up only 24 percent of participants. The London games are also the first Olympics where all 204 nations have sent a female athlete. — Fergus Bell — Twitter http://twitter.com/fergb ___ BOLT'S NOT DONE Usain Bolt says the two golds he's won in London makes him a legend. So what happens if he adds another? One night after becoming the first man to win the 100 and 200 in back-to-back Olympics, Bolt will get started toward a quest for a sixth career gold medal in the preliminary round of the 4x100 on Friday. Continued... |