Hwang of ROK wins Women's -67kg Taekwondo gold

Karine Sergerie (blue) fights with Hwang Kyung-seon.

Hwang Kyung-seon from the ROK beat Karine Sergerie of Canada to win gold in the Women's -67kg Taekwondo at the Beijing Olympics. The bronze medals went to Patience Gwladys Epangue of France and Sandra Saric of Croatia.

Karine Sergerie (blue) fights with Hwang Kyung-seon.

Hwang Kyung-seon celebrates with her coach.

Hwang Kyung-seon waves to spectators.

Greece beats Germany in Water Polo semifinal

Moritz Oeler of Germany attempts a shot on goal against goalie Alexander Tchigir of Germany.

The Water Polo semifinal between Germany and Greece took place at the Ying Tung Natatorium on day fourteen of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Greece beat Germany 13-9.

Georgios Afroudakis (R) of Greece fights for the ball against Tobias Kreuzmann of Germany.

Andreas Schlotterbeck (C) of Germany fights for the ball against Dimitrios Mazis (L) and Dimitrios Miteloudis of Greece.

Marko Savic (R) of Germany looks to move the ball against Christos Afroudakis of Greece.

Hungary beats Montenegro to reach Water Polo final

Tamas Kasas (L) of Hungary looks to move the ball against Vladimir Gojkovic of Montenegro.

The Water Polo semifinal between Hungary and Montenegro took place at the Ying Tung Natatorium on day fourteen of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Hungary beat Montenegro 11-9.

Tamas Kasas (white cap) of Hungary fights for the ball against Boris Zlokovic of Montenegro.

Nikola Janovic of Montenegro celebrates after scoring a goal.

Tamas Kasas (L) of Hungary attempts a shot against Aleksandar Ivovic of Montenegro.

Great Britain tops Men's 4 x 400m Relay Round 1

(BEIJING, August 22) -- The Great Britain team of Andrew Steele, Robert Tobin, Michael Bingham, and Martyn Rooney were the top finishers in the Men's 4 x 400m Relay Round 1 with a time of 2:59.33 on Friday, August 22. The Bahamas (2:59.88) and the United States (2:59.98) were the second and third top-qualifying teams.

Five other teams also qualified for Saturday's final, including: Jamaica (3:00.09), Russia (3:00.14), Belgium (3:00.67), Australia (3:00.68), and Poland (3:00.74).

The event world record time of 2:54.29 was set by the United States in Stuttgart, Germany, July 1993. The United States has dominated the Men's 4 x 400m Relay in the Olympic Games, taking 15 gold medals in the event since 1912.

The event final will be held at 9:05 p.m. on Saturday, August 23.

Zou and Purevdorj set up an all-Asian affair in Light-Flyweight final

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Zou Shiming of China defeated Paddy Barnes of Ireland 15-0 in the first semifinal of the Men's Light-Flyweight (48kg). Barnes was helpless against the quick reflexes and footwork of Zou.

In the second semifinal, Serdamba Purevdorj of Mongolia edged out Yampier Hernandez G of Cuba. The two fighters were tied at 8-8 after four rounds, but Purevdorj was judged as the superior fighter.

Barnes and Hernandez G will be awarded a bronze medal.

The gold medal match between Zou and Purevdorj will take place at 1:30 p.m. on August 24.

Argentina win Olympic Women's Hockey bronze

Claudia Ines Burkart (No.24) of Argentina celebrates.

a the bronze in Olympic Women's Hockey tournament on Friday, August 22, beating defending champions Germany 3-1.

Tina Bachmann (No.2) of Germany reacts after losing the match.

Members of Argentina celebrate.

Fanny Rinne (No.16) of Germany and Claudia Ines Burkart (No.24) of Argentina compete for the ball.

Belarus wins Men's Kayak Four (K4) 1000m gold

Kayak paddlers of Belarus (front) compete.

Belarus claimed gold in the Men's Kayak Four (K4) 1000m in 2:55.714 at the Beijing Olympics on Friday.

Slovakia took silver with a time of 2:56.593, and Germany won bronze in 2:56.676.

Kayak paddlers of Belarus (front) compete.

Kayak paddlers of Belarus (front) celebrate.

Flash: Saei claims gold in Taekwondo Men's -80kg

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Iranian veteran Hadi Saei took the gold medal in the Men's -80kg division by beating Italian taekwondo fighter Mauro Sarmiento 6-4 on Friday in a final match of the Olympic Taekwondo competition.

Argentina wins second straight Women's Hockey bronze

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Argentina scored two unanswered goals in the first half of the Women's Hockey bronze medal match and then added one more goal in the second on their way to a 3-1 victory over Athens Olympic champion Germany. This is Argentina's second consecutive bronze medal in Olympic Women's Hockey.

Making better use of their chances, Argentina scored through Claudia Burkart (11th minute), Carla Rebecchi (23rd) and Noel Barrionuevo (62nd) while Germany's lone goal came in the 45th minute when Anke Kuehn scored.

Argentina's first goal came from a badly executed penalty corner as Mariana Gonzalez Oliva failed to stop the push. But she recovered to pass to Burkart who was left free to drive to the boards.

A shaken Germany conceded another goal when their goalkeeper Kristina Reynolds failed to cover an attempt from Alejandra Gulla and Rebecchi, lurking near the post, flicked the ball in.

Germany pulled one back early in the second half when Kuehn struck from just inside the circle after Julia Mueller put her through. The goal was upheld after video referral.

Germany momentarily took control as they pressed hard for the equalizer, but their forwards wasted several chances. Intent on attacking, Germany left their defense open and Argentina forced a penalty corner which Barrionuevo converted for the insurance goal.

Germany won a series of late penalty corners, but they were unable to capitalize as Argentina took their second consecutive Olympic bronze.

Hungary get shot at third successive Water Polo gold

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Hungary are one step away from history following a come-from-behind 11-9 victory over Montenegro in the first semifinal of the Men's Water Polo competition at the Yingdong Natatorium on August 22.

The champions of the past two Olympics (Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004), Hungary denied European champions Montenegro a gold-medal-final berth.

An unprecedented third straight Olympic title match awaits the powerful, experienced and wily Hungarians following a patient game in which Montenegro showed plenty of skill and talent.

"The Cuban Volleyball team did it and the Danish Handball team did it. We are going to be the third," Hungarian goalkeeper Zoltan Szecsi said after the game.

Montenegro had a three-goal lead in the second quarter after leading 4-3 at the first break. Two quick goals at the top of the second had Montenegro looking good at 6-3.

However, Hungarian teams don't cave under pressure and the score was 6-6 three minutes later.

By the end of the third period Hungary, thanks to two Denes Andor Varga goals, led 9-7.

Montenegro drew level at 3:15 left in the game, but Tamas Kasas and Daniel Varga took Hungary beyond Montenegro's reach.

Flash: Hwang claims gold in Taekwondo Women's -67kg

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Hwang Kyung-seon of the Republic of Korea defeated reigning world champion Karine Sergerie of Canada 2-1 to win gold in the Women's -67kg weight division of Taekwondo on Friday, August 22.

US on track in Women's 4 x 400m

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Defending Olympic champion the United States finished first in heat 2 of round one in the Women's 4x400m Relay in 3:22.45 to qualify for the final at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Finishing second after the United States in 3:22.60 in the same heat to qualify is Athens 2004 bronze medalist Jamaica.

The United States and Jamaica will be joined in the final by Russia, who won heat 1 of round one in 3:23.71.

Other teams among the eight finalists in the Women's 4 x 400m Relay are Belarus, Nigeria, Cuba, Great Britain and Germany.

The final competition in the Women's 4x400m Relay will be held at the National Stadium at 8:40 p.m. (UTC/GMC +8) on Saturday, August 23.

Canoe/Kayak Flatwater Day 6 Preview: 1000 meters down, 500 to go

(BEIJING, August 22) -- All Canoe/Kayak Flatwater competition will come to an end with six gold medals on Saturday, August 23. Many competitors who paddled for 1000 meter finals in their respective events on Friday will now try for medals in the 500 meter course.

Men's Kayak Single (K1) 500 meter

3:30 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

This final gives the K1 1000m finalists who competed on Friday a chance to rendezvous once more. Beijing K1 1000m gold medalist Tim Brabants of Great Britain, silver medalist Eirik Veraas Larsen of Norway, bronze medalist Ken Wallace of Australia, seventh place Stjepan Janic and eighth place Adam van Koeverden of Canada will all gather again one day after finishing that final to compete for medals on a shorter K1 500m course.

Men's Canoe Single (C1) 500 meter

3:45 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

Again, some familiar faces will return in this race. Spain's David Cal took a silver medal in the previous day's C1 1000m, which means this final will be his last chance to win a gold medal. His best rival could be Russia's Maxim Opalev, who took a silver in Athens and a bronze in Sydney.

Women's Kayak Single (K1) 500 meter

4:20 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

All spotlights will focus on 43-year-old seven-time Olympian Josefa Idem who has taken four medals, including a gold in Sydney. Germany's Katrin Wagner-Augustin won a gold medal with her team in K4 500m already in Beijing. She will be hoping for her second gold medal in this tournament. Katalin Kovacs of Hungary took a silver in the K4 500m final on Friday, and will be looking to improve upon the color of her medal in this final.

Men's Kayak Double (K2) 500 meter

4:35 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

Defending champions Ronald Rauhe and Tim Wieskötter of Germany are favored to win this race. They have to face challenges from Danish pair Kim Wraae Knudsen and Rene Holten Poulsen, and Italian pair Andrea Facchin and Antonio Massimiliano Scaduto, who placed second and third in the K2 1000m final on Friday. Belarusian pair Raman Piatrushenka and Vadzim Makhneu who won a medal with their team in the K4 1000m also have a shot at the gold.

Men's Canoe Double (C2) 500 meter

5:05 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

China's Yang Wenjun and Meng Guanliang are likely to defend their title in this race. Their fiercest rival would be Christian Gille and Tomasz Wylenzek of Germany who finished second in the C2 1000m final on Friday. Belarus'Andrei Bahdanovich and Aliaksandr Bahdanovich just won C2 1000m final and may likely to carry their winning form to the C2 500m

Women's Kayak Double (K2) 500 meter

5:20 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8)

Defending champion Katalin Kovacs and Natasa Janic are favored to retain their title. However, they have to defeat Germany's Fanny Fischer and Nicole Reinhardt who surpassed them in the K4 500m final. Poland's Beata Mikolajczyk and Aneta Konieczna also have a good chance to win a medal.

Flash: Lopez and Zhu win bronze medals in Men's -80kg taekwondo

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Defending champion Steven Lopez of the United States won a bronze medal by defeating Rashad Ahmadov of Azerbaijan 3-2 in the bronze medal match of the Men's -80kg division of the Olympic Taekwondo competition.

In the other bronze medal match, Chinese fighter Zhu Guo defeated Aaron Cook of Great Britain 4-1 to win a bronze medal.

Cycling BMX Review: Chausson and Strombergs enjoy golden Olympic debu

(BEIJING, August 22) -- BMX athletes delivered fireworks in the Men's and Women's events worthy of their Olympic Games debut in competition at the Laoshan BMX Venue on Friday, August 22.

Cool-headed world champion Maris Strombergs of Latvia fended off an all-American challenge to win the Men's gold medal.

Strombergs sailed through qualifying and semifinal competition to grab the coveted No. 1 gate start slot. He used this advantage to take the lead coming out of the first turn in the eight-man final.

Americans Mike Day and Donny Robinson tried in vain to rein in Strombergs, who hung on to win Latvia's first gold medal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Day was fastest in his semifinals heat but had to settle for silver in the final.

Robinson crashed in the final leg of his three-run semifinal, which put him in the outside lane in the final, from where he hacked his way through the field to take bronze.

South African Sifiso Nhlapo's crash in the second turn of this wild gold medal run also took out Australia's Jared Graves and France's Damien Godet.

The chance of an Olympic medal lured Mountain Bike downhill queen Anne-Caroline Chausson of France out of retirement.

Fending off the pre-race favorite, Shanaze Reade of Great Britain, Chausson passed Reade in a daring inside pass on the first corner to claim the gold medal.

Chausson already had 13 world titles in three disciplines in downhill Mountain Bike, which is not an Olympic event.

Reade clipped wheels in a desperate attempt to pass Chausson in the third and final turn, only to crash out of the medals. France's Laetitia le Corguille avoided the crash to take the silver.

Jill Kintner of the United States, a three-time Four-Cross world champion, won bronze despite riding with injured knee ligaments.

Epangue and Saric win bronzes in Women's -67kg taekwondo

(BEIJING, August 22) -- French taekwondo fighter Gwladys Patience Epangue claimed a bronze by defeating Australian fighter Tina Morgan 4-1 in the bronze medal match on Friday in the Women's -67kg division of the Olympic Taekwondo competition.

The other bronze medal went to Sandra Saric of Croatia, who overpowered Asuncion Ocasio Rodriguez of Puerto Rico 5-1 in the other bronze medal match.

Argentina wins second straight Women's Hockey bronze

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Argentina scored two unanswered goals in the first half of the Women's Hockey bronze medal match and then added one more in the second on their way to a 3-1 victory over Athens Olympic champion Germany. This is Argentina's second consecutive bronze medal in Olympic Women's Hockey. The gold medal match between China and the Netherlands is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m. (UTC/GMT +8).

Greece to play off for Water Polo seventh place

(BEIJING, August 22) -- Greece outplayed Germany 13-9 at Yingdong Natatorium on Friday and will now face Australia in the seventh-place play-off in the Men's Water Polo competition on Sunday.

Greece played a calm, controlled match, taking time to place their passes and maintain a tight defense.

The teams were tied 3-3 at the first break but Greece pulled away from that point, outscoring the Germans 3-1 in the second quarter and 4-2 in the third.

Germany were unable to close the gap despite matching Greece 3-3 in the fourth period.

Greece's Georgios Ntoskas netted six goals, four in the third quarter, to take his tournament tally to a team-leading 20.

Germany will play Italy for ninth place on August 24.