US OPEN TENNIS

A national hero in Maryland and the United States, he has won 16 Olympic medals. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, he broke the 36-year-old record of Mark Spitz with eight gold Olympic medals. From 2004 to 2008, Michael Phelps has won more Olympic gold medals than many countries (including Ireland, Luxembourg, Iceland, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal and Malaysia). Unlike Mark Spitz, Michael did not compete at the Pan American Games. Mike Celizic (sportswriter) wrote :” Phelps has already done things we’ve never seen before and are unlikely to see again. And he’s done it every time he’s left the starting blocks. His 14 gold medals for his career are the record. In Beijing, he won eight gold medals, five of them all by himself and three as a member of two relay teams. He won two of the golds on the same day, and seven medals came with a new world record”. 2. Rafael Nadal (Tennis/ Spain):The 22-year-old is one of the greatest tennis players in history. He became the first Spanish to win the gold …

He destroyed Fernando Gonzalez in the finals, 6-3,7-6, 6-3. “Nowhere in my best dreams I can imagine something like what I did this year,” Nadal said. “I know how difficult it is to win these things, and especially here, because you only have one chance every four years.” The gold medal was the first ever for Spain in Olympic tennis.When the Beijing Olympic Games opened in August 2008, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were the contending odd-on favorites.However, Federer was eliminated by James Blake.Winning the Olympic title and reaching the world number-one ranking in singles, Rafael has have a good year in 2008. Rafael Nadal’s uncle, Miguel Angel Nada Homar, played three FIFA World Championships (Los Angeles 1994, Paris 1998, Seoul-Tokyo 2002). This Olympic champion was discovered by Antonio “Toni” Nadal Homar. Toni is his uncle. Under coach Toni Nadal’s tutelage, he has won several World titles. Rafael once said: “I think that having my uncle and coach with me has been the best …

.. India was one of the first Asian countries to sent female athletes to the Olympic Games. This country had sent 4 sportswomen -swimming & athletics- to Helsinki in 1952. Indian sprinter Norman D. Pritchard, who lived in England, became the first athlete from Asia to win an Olympic medal. In 1900, he won two Olympic silver medals (200m and 200m hurdles). For this reason , India -the most poorest country in the 1900s- became the first Asian country to win an Olympic medal. In 1976, O.P.Mehra -president of the Indian Olympic Association- refused to join the Tanzania-led boycott of the Montreal Olympic Games protesting the participation of New Zeland-country’s rugby team visited South Africa. During the Apartheid years,South Africa was expelled from the International Olympic Committee. India -whose prime minister Indira Gandhi fought against the apartheid in the 1970s- sent 26 athletes to Montreal (Canada). This country sent 1 athlete (skier) to the Winter Olympic Games in Innsbruck (Aus …