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Jamaica's Usain Bolt (R) does push ups as he celebrates after winning the men's 200m final - Source: Reuters -
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All the action from London on day 13 of the Olympic games.
8:48am
The final standings in the decathlon are in, and our Brent Newdick has finished 12th overall, out of 26 competitors - a great effort for the man from Tauranga. Newdick recorded one personal best and four season's best over the course of the ten discipline event.
The USA claim a 1/2 with Eaton winning gold and Trey Hardee finishing second. Cuba's Leonel Suarez claims bronze despite a strong run in the 1500m. (JM)
8:40am
American Ashton Eaton has sealed gold in the decathlon after finishing sixth in his heat of the 1500m, but some careful calculations are being made to decide who will be joing him on the podium.
The USA has also just won the women's footbal tournament, beating Japan 2-1 in the final, and the women's water-polo where they beat Spain 8-5.
So, that should push USA above China in the medal table 39-37.. (JM)
8:27am
Brent collapses on the track having crossed the finish line fourth in this heat with a time of 4minutes 38.20. It's a season's best for him which is a great achievement given how he must have been feeling before the race - i.e. knackered. The second heat is yet to run, so I'll fill you in on Brent's final position once all the points have been counted up. (JM)
8:23am
A slow pace to this race, hardly surprising given all the athletes have been through 9 gruelling events and the eye is trained to a faster speed having seen the likes of Nick Willis competing at full tilt in this event. Brent's about fifth at the moment.
8:20am
Time for decathlete Brent Newdick to take to the track in the 1500m, his personal best is 4minutes 29.35, but it has been a tough couple of days of competition. (JM)
8:02am
Usain Bolt has made history! He has become the first man
to ever defend both his 100m and 200m Olympic titles. Yohan Blake
pushed him all the way but Bolt showed his class to win in 19.32
seconds. He slowed down at the end and could have broken his
world record of 19.19 seconds but it didn't matter! He does 10
push-ups to celebrate for good measure. Is he the coolest man
alive? Yes I think so. (CM)
Chris' Fact: Bolt's 19.32 seconds is the same time the
great Micheal Johnson ran at the 1996 Olympics.
7:55am
And the man, aka Usain Bolt, has just walked out on to the track
ahead of the 200m final. The 85,000 crowd goes into frenzy as they
welcome the sprinting superstar. We are just five minutes away
now to the BIG race and let's be honest, this is going to the best
20 seconds of the day. Stay tuned. (CM)
7:36am
"Blue ribbon/riband" (depending on how you prefer to spell it) is a phrase that keeps on cropping up when commentators talk about athletics events - first the 1500m was the "blue ribbon/riband" event, then the honour was bestowed on the 400, 200 and 100m races too. So what are they on about?
Obviously most people will be aware the phrase relates to something being prestigious or high-profile... But, did you know it also relates to a trophy awarded to the fastest trans-atlantic passenger ferry ? Or to a particular order of knights? This morning has been nothing if not an education. (JM)
7:26am
Men's 800m champion, and world record holder, David Rudisha was being heralded ahead of the Games as one of the best track athletes on display - better even than Usain Bolt.
He smashed the world record twice in one week back in 2010, and has been head and shoulders above his rivals for the last four years. His win today strenghtens his claim as the best 800m runner of all time.
He's not shy on confidence either, he told the BBC before the Games: "I understand that billions of people are watching. Doing something special at the Olympics would be an honour. Kenya know I am going to bring this gold home. They have no doubt. I want to do it for them." (JM)
7:21am
Brent Newdick has improved to 14th in the decathlon with7296
points after the final javelin results are confirmed. A top 16
finish would be a good result for the Kiwi. By the way, Jack's fact
below is genius. Where did he get it from? (CM)
7:00am
New world record for David Rudisha of Kenya in the 800m final! Wow, this guy is impressive, he led for most of the race and really stretched it out in the second lap leaving the rest of the field grimmacing as they fought to catch him. His time was 1:40.91, beating his own previous world record of 1:41.01. The commentators are having kittens, claiming this is the best 800m race of all time!
Rudisha has dominated the distance for four years and follows his father Daniel, who won a silver in the 4x400m relay in Mexico in 1968, as a Games medallist but is the first Olympic champion from his Maasai tribe.
Nijel Amos of Botswana won silver in 1.41.73, while bronze went to Timothy Kitum of Kenya in 1.42.53, both athletes running personal bests.
Jack's fact: This is the first world record to be beaten on the track this Olympics. (JM)
6:41am
We have all heard of All Black legend Colin Meads playing against Eastern Transvaal in 1970 with a broken arm. Its stuff of Kiwi legend but if you think that's tough what about American 4x400 metre runner, Manteo Mitchell, who ran the last 200m of his leg today with a broken leg! "I got out pretty slow, but I picked it up and when I got to the 100-metre mark it felt weird. As soon as I took the first step past the 200-metrr mark, I felt it break. I heard it. I even put out a little war cry, but the crowd was so loud you couldn't hear it," Mitchell said. "I knew if I finished strong we could still get it (the baton) around. I saw Josh Mance motioning me in for me to hand it off to him, which lifted me. I didn't want to let those three guys down, or the team down, so I just ran on it. It hurt so bad." The US relay team ended up joint first with the Bahamas in identical times of 2 minutes 58.87 seconds; the fastest ever run in the first round of the relay at the Olympic Games. Unbelievable! (CM/Reuters)
6:03am
No improvement for Newdick on his last throw, so he has to be happy with 59.82m. Next up, the 1500m. Stick around for the medal ceremony - one of the great traditions of decathlon is that all competitors are afforded a lap of honour and respect for their performances over the two days. (GC)
5:48am
Newdick improves to 59.82m with his second effort in the javelin. (GC)
5:45am
Our good friends at Reuters have supplied the headline of the day: 'Synchronised Swimming-Not as easy as it looks.' Now I don't know about you but none of what is happening above looks easy at all! (CM)
5:35am
Deacathlon javelin is underway and Cuba's Lionel Suarez has just thrown further than any other decathlete in Olympic history with 76.94m, just a little down on his personal best. Brent Newdick records 54.99m, about 10 m down on his best. (GC)
5:30am
Not only has American Clarissa Shields become the first women to win gold in the middleweight division but she is also the second youngest ever Olympic boxing champion. The 17-year-old beat Russian Nadezda Torlopova 19-11. Only fellow American Jackie Fields, who won a gold medal in the featherweight division in 1936 as a 16-year-old, achieved the feat younger. Incidentally the youngest ever Olympic champ was also American. Marjorie Gestring was 13 years and 268 days old when she won the gold medal at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, in the 3-metre springboard diving competition. (CM) 5:16am
Not looking good for Australia any more. Thay've been outscored 22-12 in the third quarter and Cambage was held scoreless by the Americans. They lead 65-59 into the final quarter. (GC)
4:40am
Aussies lead 47-43 and Cambage have been an absolute colossus with 19 points. Check out her dunk from earlier in the tournament. If swimmer Stephanie Rice takes exception to the rumourmongering, she'd be wise not to confront the 2.03m/98kg Cambage over those tweets or she risks being crushed. Perhaps Kobe should stay clear of her also. C'mon Aussie (can't believe I just said that)! (GC)
4:26am
If the Opals can somehow win this game and take the gold medal, they'd be doing the NZ Tall Ferns a big favour. As defending champions, Australia would automatically qualify for the next Olympics at Rio, leaving New Zealand to fill the Oceania berth in that draw. The Aussies's success over the past decade has helped the Ferns attend three of the last four Olympics - the Opals qualified as host country in 2000, they secured an extra Oceania spot at Athens 2004 with their top-six finish at the '02 world championships and gained automatic entry as reigning world champions four years ago at Beijing. A ticket to Brazil would certainly give the NZ women's programme a much-needed boost. (GC)
4:08am
The women's basketball semis have begun with the unbeaten, with the unbeaten Americans taking on the Aussie Opals. Good to see Liz Cambage in action on the court after her controversial tweeting efforts off it . Also great to hear our own Glen Larmer in the commentary position for a sport he knows a little more about than handball. "Dalai" was struggling to get a grip on the latter before leaving for London to serve on the international commentary team, but he's done plenty of basketball calls in his previous life as a radio star. Opals are up 22-20 after the opening quarter. (GC)
3:02am
Willers is safely through to the semi-final tomorrow after winning the first race over Frenchman Daudet. Again he was easily the quickest starter and this time he did enough to hold off the challenge of the French rider over the final rhythm section. (ACR)
2:55am
Unfortunate for Kurt Pickard as he crashes out of the third run. He didn't start as well in this run and just got clipped by the Colombian Emilio Andres Falla Buchley on the third jmup causing him to lose control of his bike and come down hard on his left shoulder. That could be the end of him I'm afraid. (ACR)
2:35am
There was no major drama in that run for Willers, but he still looked pretty good as he finished second, just pipped at the line by the Frenchman Joris Daudet. Barring a major disaster in the next run he should go straight through to the semi-finals.
From what I can gather, it's crucial to start sharply on this track to make sure you are first to that first bend. Otherwise you are liable to run into trouble with the chasing pack as you come round the corner. (ACR)
2:28am
Kurt Pickard improves on his first run finishinhg third behind
Dutchman Raymon van der Biezen amd Khalen Young. That puts him
second on the standings, so one more good ride could ensure that he
goes straight through to the semi-finals. (ACR)
2:14am
Good news for Kiwi fans living in London as the popular 'Kiwi House' reopens following the fire there yesterday morning. The venue underwent checks by the relevant authorities this morning and approvals were given to re-open. (ACR)
2:09am
Just as I mention carnage, the Kiwi Marc Willers has
benefitted big time from some huge carnage on the track. The New
Zealander led out of the gate and held it into the first turn at
which point there was a clash of wheels between two riders behind
which caused everyone else in the race to fall off. This allowed
Willers to cruise around the course and claim the win in his first
run. Crazy! (ACR)
2:02am
Kiwi BMX rider Kurt Pickard has competed in the first quarter-finals heat and finished in fifth place in his first run. He started well getting out into third place, but was swamped by the field before the Australian rider Khalen Young came off his bike in a gnarly crash. After three runs the top two riders in each quarter-final advance to the semis.
BMX is only at the Olympics for the seond time, but it is quickly becoming one of my favourite events. Fast-paced and plenty of carnage, exactly what we like to see! (ACR)
1:56am
Former Football Ferns coach John Herdman has led the Canadian women's football team to bronze and the country's first medal in a Summer Olympics team sport since 1936. Diana Matheson nailed a stoppage time winnner to beat France 1-0 in the bronze medal match. By all accounts the Canadians were absolutely outplayed, but somehow managed to keep a clean sheet. That's a nice result after they felt they were hard done by in their nail-biting semi-final loss to the USA the other day. (ACR)
1:36am
Newdick fails his three attempts at 4.80m in the pole vault, so he has to be happy with 4.70m - that's the same height he cleared when he achieved his personal best and Olympic qualifying performance of 8057 points earlier this year. Javelin is next. (GC)
1:20am
On the subject of alcohol, this video of new Olympic high jump champion Ivan Ukhov is doing the social media rounds . It's taken four years ago and the purists won't appreciate it, but it's mildly amusing. (GC)
1:17am
And more good news from the track - South Africa have been promoted into the 4x400m final after the incident that knocked them out of the heats before paralympian Oscar Pistorius could even take the baton for the third leg. "The Jury of Appeal met and agreed to advance the South African team to the final, even though they did not finish the race, considering that they had been severely damaged in the incident with Kenya," an IAAF statement read. (GC)
1:04am
Newdick over 4.70m on his second attempt - his personal best is 4.85m. (GC)
1:01am
Lovely quotes from Beligum cyclist Gijs Van Hoecke, who has been expelled from the Olympics after he had a big night on the town, needed help into a taxi and was photographed by the media - not sure which of those things was the biggest crime. The Mirror playfully awarded him a gold medal for partying, but his management weren't so forgiving. "The Belgian Olympic Committee and the Royal Cycling Federation deplore this incident, which fortunately did not affect life in the Olympic Village and athletes trying to rest ahead of their competition." Luckily, our hero returned home to welcoming arms - "I made a big mistake. I'm happy my parents didn't tell me off. They understand that I needed this." (GC)
12:48am
The London Olympics have reached a major milestone with the two millionth ticketed spectator having entered the Olympic Park causing organisers to hail the "passion and spirit" of the British public. (ACR)
12:42am
Newdick over 4.60m with his second attempt in the decathlon pole vault. (GC)
12:14am
The decathlon pole vault - the most technical of the 10 events - has started and this is the stage where the body just wants to crawl back into bed. Like the high jump on the first day, the vault can take a couple of hours to complete, so you must keep yourself mentally and physically keyed up through the gathering fatigue. Techniques can be pretty rough, so there's entertainment for all. Newdick has cleared 4.40m so far, but he's worth about 4.70. (GC)
11:39pm
I'm afraid there's no wind at Weymouth! That means we will have to wait to see New Zealand's Jason Saunders and Paul Snow-Hansen push for a bronze in the medal race of the men's 470 class. It was scheduled to start at midnight our time, but the wind was only about three knots. If it does not pick up today the race will be delayed until tomorrow.
Saunders and Snow-Hansen are currently in fifth position and can win the bronze medal with a good race, provided some of the crews ahead of them fall off the pace. (ACR)
11:06pm
New Zealand Taekwondo fighter Logan Campbell is gutted with himself after letting his first round clash with an unseeded Ukrainian slip away from him .
"I just didn't cover those couple of head shots, which is a
pity," Campbell said.
"The funny thing was that I was just teaching young kids in New
Zealand how to cover head shots."
Campbell is best known in New Zealand for opening a brothel in order to fund his Olympic dream! (ACR)
10:55pm
Newdick doesn't improve on his opening discus throw, so finishes with 46.15m. (GC)
10:52pm
And any faint hope that the world might witness Usain Bolt's Olympic debut over the lap are also quashed when Jamaica's third runner pulls off the track with an injury. Even though Bolt wasn't in the lineup for this heat, there's always the option of bringing him in for the final if Jamacia had qualified. That would be a sight to see, but not this time. (GC)
10:37pm
Wow, if you were hoping to catch paralympian Oscar Pistorius running the 4x400m relay, you're out of luck. Pistorius was waiting in transition to run the third leg for South African in the first heat, but his second runner never made it to the end of his carry, taken down by a Kenyan runner and unable to regain his feet. Pistorius was left standing at the start/finish shaking his head. Not the way he envisaged his Olympics ending. (GC)
10:32pm
Alright so I'm still no closer to working out how they score this taekwondo, but I have worked out that the the other Kiwi Robin Cheong was soundly beaten by an Egyptian called Hedaya Wahba who has an extremely high-pitched squeal on her. (ACR)
10:17pm
Not surprised by Newdick's lumberjack impersonation in the decathlon hurdles. Many athletes consider the 400m is the toughest of the decathlon events, but try running the final 100m of a 400 with rubber legs (as Newdick did last night) and then having to drag yourself out of bed early the next morning to scale 10 hurdles with those legs still screaming at you. If he clobbered seven hurdles, he's probably lucky to have finished at all - bank those points and move on. Newdick has opened the discus with 46m, which is a nice safe throw for him to build on. He has thrown 48m before. (GC)
9:48pm
There's no luck for Carrington and Taylor as they fail to make any impression on their final finishing in seventh place. Carrington will be back in action tomorrow in her signature event in which she is world champion, the K1 200m.
9:14pm
K1 500m paddler Teneale Hatton finished the B Final in seventh place. But there's even more bad news, the Australians have won another gold medal at Eton Dorney with the K4 Kayakers getting up for gold. Here's hoping Carrington and Taylor can provide a good news story from the lake where New Zealand had so much success last week.
9:02pm
New Zealand Taekwondo exponent Logan Campbell's Olympic campaign has started with a loss after he was beaten 10-6 by 18-year-old Ukrainian Hryhorii Husarov. I have to admit I have absolutely no idea how they score that, but they make some pretty sweet noises when they do jump kicks. From what I can ascertain Campbell will get another chance to fight in a repechage if Husarov reaches the final. Talk about confusing!
The Black Sticks men finish their campaign in ninth after beating Argentina 3-1.
8:36pm
So Newdick has slid down the standings into 20th after his disappointing effort picking up 847 points in the hurdles. His next event is the discus at 10:10pm.
It's still 3-0 to New Zealand in the hockey.
8:09pm
Not a great run from Brent Newdick in the 110m hurdles in the decathlon as he knocked over seven hurdles on his way to a time of 15.02, he will be disappointed with that.
Meanwhile the Black Sticks are going great guns against Argentina, they have scored three first half goals to be up 3-0 at the break.
7:25pm
The Black Sticks men are underway as they play for pride against Argentina in the playoff for ninth and 10th place.
A medal chance for New Zealand looms in the K2 500m final, with Lisa Carrington and Erin Taylor set to paddle for gold, while men's 470 sailors Jason Saunders and Paul Snow-Hansen are an outside chance to pick up a bronze in tonight's medal race.
Elsewhere the men BMX cyclists are up in their quarterfinals, while Brent Newdick will try to improve his position from 16th as he completes the decathlon.