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with one token exception.2008 SUMMER OLYMPICS
Eight riveting rivalries to watch
These potentially great matchups bear viewing at Games
SCOTT FOWLER
sfowler@charlotteobserver.com
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APTyson Gay ran a wind-assisted time of 9.68 seconds during the men's 100-meter final at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in June. He injured his hamstring in the 200 at the Trials and it's not certain he'll be healthy in Beijing.
The Olympics always drip with drama, but there's nothing quite like a big rivalry to increase the tension. Olympic rivalry history includes a number of unforgettable U.S. vs. Russia team battles (men's basketball in 1972, the miraculous hockey matchup in 1980) as well as several other individual clashes you might remember.
Think Nancy Kerrigan vs. Tonya Harding. Or Jesse Owens vs. Adolf Hitler. Or Rulon Gardner vs. Alexander Karelin.
Here are eight great rivalries that will help fuel the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
USA's Tyson Gay vs. Jamaica's Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell, 100-meter dash
The 100-meter dash, always one of the Olympics' most glamorous events, determines the unofficial title of “world's fastest man.” This year's 100 should have even a little more pop than usual. Gay will have two worthy Jamaican challengers – world-record holder Bolt and his countryman, Powell.
Originally, it was supposed to be Powell who flew alongside Gay toward the finish of this race, and it still might be. But Bolt came out of the sky like a … well… lightning bolt when he recently blew away the world record with a time of 9.72 seconds. At 6-foot-5, Bolt is a giant of a sprinter, a half-foot taller than Gay.
Gay ran a sizzling 9.68 at the U.S. Olympic trials in his late June victory, but it was wind-aided and didn't go into the record books as a world mark. Then his hamstring cramped in the 200 at the trials and he literally tumbled out of the event. While those close to him insist Gay will be fine to run the 100 in Beijing, it's still not certain, and the injury adds another intriguing element.
USA vs China, women's gymnastics
This ranks as the most high-profile team rivalry at these Olympics. Expect NBC to cover it in breathless detail. The U.S. has two of the best all-around gymnasts in the world in Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin, but China has excellent depth and a home-court advantage that can't be discounted.
“China is our biggest competition,” said Johnson, who is 16 years old, 4-foot-9 and the reigning champion in the all-around event. “Knowing we're going onto their home turf will give us a little more pressure.”
But, added Liukin: “We are the team to beat. We've earned that.”
The U.S. women won gold at the 2007 worlds. China won gold at the same meet in 2006. The Chinese have three-time world vault champion Cheng Fui and possibly more depth than the American squad.
USA's Michael Phelps vs. the field, men's swimming.
No single swimmer can challenge the overall supremacy of Phelps, who enters these Olympics as a splashy superstar. He won eight medals last time out in 2004 (six golds, two bronze). Entered in eight events once again, Phelps might surpass his gold medal total this time around.
But that doesn't mean Phelps can't be challenged in individual events. Teammate Ryan Lochte was inches away from beating Phelps in the 400 individual medley at the U.S. Olympic trials, with both swimmers going under the world record. Phelps is perceived as a bit vulnerable in almost all of his events, and even Phelps will tell you that he's not quite as energetic as he used to be.
USA vs Brazil, women's soccer
Brazil sports the best women's soccer player in the world – Marta. Her nickname is “Pele with skirts” and she is a gifted forward who helped Brazil whip the U.S. at the 2007 Women's World Cup, 4-0. That was the game that also sparked a huge controversy when then-U.S. coach Greg Ryan replaced regular goalkeeper Hope Solo with Briana Scurry. An angry Solo said after the game she would have made saves on the goals Scurry allowed.
In retribution, Solo got kicked off the team and blackballed by her teammates.
Now Solo is the starting goalie again. The team has decided to let bygones be bygones under new coach Pia Sundhage. We'll get a chance to see if Solo really could stop some of Marta's creative shots, assuming the two teams advance out of round-robin play as expected.
The U.S. won gold over Brazil in 2004 when Abby Wambach scored the game-winner on a header. Wambach, the best goal scorer for the U.S., will miss this Olympics with a broken leg, however. Longtime stars like Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain and Kristine Lilly won't be back, either. China also might be a factor in the hunt for the gold medal.
China's Lui Xiang vs. Cuba's Dayron Robles, 110 hurdles
Except for basketball star Yao Ming, there might not be a Chinese athlete more well-known entering these Summer Games than Lui Xiang. The hurdler is a source of national pride due to his gold medal in the 110-meter hurdles at the 2004 Olympics.
Lui was China's first gold-medal winner in track and field in 20 years. He has proven that wasn't a fluke with a slew of good performances since, often followed by a round of karaoke later that night.
Lui will be fiercely challenged in these Games, however, and no challenge will be as fierce as the one put forth by Robles. It was Robles who took Lui's world record away in June, running a 12.87 seconds to break the mark of 12.88. When the two have competed, it's been even – they split four meetings during the 2007 season.
The American hurdlers could also be a factor in this race – this is an event that the U.S. traditionally rules – but Robles and Lui look most likely to duke it out for gold and silver.
USA's Jeremy Wariner vs. USA's LaShawn Merritt, 400 meters
Wariner, the Olympic gold medalist in 2004, was invincible in this race for awhile. Not anymore. It was Merritt – who spent his brief college career at East Carolina – who won the U.S. Olympic trials in early July. And although Merritt is only 3-13 lifetime against Wariner, he has now beaten Wariner in two of their past four meetings.
Wariner has two trademarks: his sunglasses and his finishing kick. Merritt might still be perceived as the underdog in Beijing, but given the close recent outcomes, he will probably consider himself as the favorite. Either man has a shot at Michael Johnson's world record of 43.18.
USA's Brendan Hansen vs. Japan's Kosuke Kitajima, 100 breaststroke
The two best breaststrokers in the world will face off again in 2008 in the 100-meter breaststroke with their battles in 2004 serving as a tantalizing backdrop.
Kitajima beat Hansen in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke in the 2004 Olympics. Hansen finished second in the 100 and third in the 200. The two are the obvious class of the field. Hansen holds the world record in the 100 and Kitajima holds it in the 200 (breaking Hansen's record in June). Hansen finished a disappointing fourth in the 200 at the U.S. trials, however, so he will only get a chance for revenge in the 100 against Kitajima.
The American swim team was suspicious of Kitajima in 2004. Aaron Peirsol, a U.S. backstroker and close friend of Hansen's, accused Kitajima of using an illegal dolphin kick to help propel himself to the gold medal. “He knew what we was doing,” Peirsol said. “It's cheating.” But the Japanese swimmer wasn't penalized by the judges.
USA's Misty May-Treanor/Kerri Walsh vs China's Tian Jia/Wang Jie, beach volleyball
Walsh and May-Treanor have long formed the best duo in the world in this sport, always one of the hottest tickets at the Olympics because of the beach-party atmosphere that usually surrounds it. Both have gotten married since they won the gold medal together in 2004, and both would like to win gold again in 2008 and then get to work on starting families.
China's duo might have something to say about the gold, however. Tian Jia has played with two previous partners also named “Wang,” but the third one might be the charm. She and the 6-foot-3 Wang Jie have been posting very good results over the past two years, including a runner-up finish to Walsh and May-Treanor at the 2007 World Championships. The two would need to play the match of their lives to beat May-Treanor and Walsh in a sport where that duo has been so dominant for so long. But the match will be played in China, which might help.
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