The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition - The End Is Near
All good things must come to an end and the Summer Olympics are coming to a close on Sunday. Don’t go into a “what am I going to watch every night until midnight?” depression yet. There’s a whole weekend of Olympic excitement ahead as well as a gold medal quality UFC fight.
We prefer gold teeth,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Summer Olympics
- Kind of a big deal. The debate on whether or not Usain Bolt is “best sprinter ever” got a little more exciting. He won his third consecutive gold medal in the 200m race - the first man to ever win three Olympic medals in the 200. That was most likely his last individual race of his career although it’s not too late to witness the best; he will compete in the 4x100 relay today.
- Get that gold. For the first the time ever, Americans swept the 100m hurdle race. Brianna Rollins (gold), Nia Ali (silver) and Kristi Castlin (bronze) claimed the top three spots in the race to make history.
- Marriage made of medals. American Ashton Eaton won his second consecutive gold in the grueling event that is the decathlon. His wife Brianne Theisen-Eaton (you might recognize the duo from the VISA commercial) won a bronze medal in the heptathlon for Canada. That’s what we call a fit family.
What to watch before it’s all over
- Team U.S.A. women’s basketball team play Spain for the gold tomorrow. The women have been dominating the Olympics. Fingers crossed they’ll win their sixth straight gold medal.
- Team U.S.A. men’s basketball team plays Spain today in the semifinals. It should be a great game as it features a rematch of the past two gold medal games.
- 18-year-old American high jumper Vashti Cunningham, daughter of former Eagles quarterback Randall Cunningham, advanced to finals of high jump and will go for gold today.
- Click here for a full Olympic schedule.
UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship)
- Save the drama for your mama. Yesterday’s UFC press conference featuring fighters Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz looked like an episode of Jerry Springer. Tensions ran high and clearly there was enough talking as the conference turned into a profanity laced, water bottle throwing tirade. The roots run deep here as the first fight between these two was the highest grossing Pay-Per-View in company history. For the record, Diaz won that fight.
Tensions are so high that all team members, minus the fighters, are banned from attending the weigh ins today. Mostly because the UFC was tired of splurging on bottled water.
Overtime
- The U.S.A Olympic Committee, is apologizing to host Brazil for a PR nightmare started by four U.S.A. swimmers. The group, lead by Ryan Lochte, said they were robbed at gunpoint. Surveillance video shows the foursome at a local gas station where they vandalized a bathroom. Long story short, the group tried to leave in their taxi but were confronted at gunpoint by security to pay for the damages, which they did. Brazil said it’s not likely to press charges but they’re not happy about the men lying by saying they were robbed and would like an apology. The hashtags #LochteGate and #Lochtemess are now trending. Of course.
Sideline stat
- While it seemed like a brilliant marketing plan at the time, McDonald’s put a location in the Olympic village offering free food for the athletes. After years of training and eating healthy, the athletes are known to splurge on junk food post medal stand. They’ve been so popular that this McDonald’s location, with lines longer than a football field, had to put a limit of 20 items ordered at a time per person. We’ll have fries with that.
Coaches’ corner
- The Boston Red Sox (baseball) coaches put in a request to delay the start time of their game vs. Detroit Tigers. The Red Sox arrived very late into Detroit (at 3 am) for a 1 pm game. The travel schedule and 162 game season is tough on players but the Tigers had the competitive advantage and denied the request. The Tigers had an ulterior motive as they are 3.5 games behind the Red Sox in the standings. Cheeky move. FYI, the Red Sox ended up losing the game.
The Rundown: 5 Wacky Things Olympians Have Done With Their Medals
You’re on the medal stand at the Olympics claiming your hard earned medal. The anthem has been sung and the party’s over, now what do you do with your medal? If you’re Michael Phelps, you wear one every day for the month of February and you’ll never have to wear the same one twice.
What would you do with your Olympic medal if you won?
My precious,
The Last Night’s Game Team
PS – Many athletes sell their medals to simply pay the bills. For more about why they’re not rolling in the dough, check out our Stilettos on the Glass Ceiling article on “Why Olympians Can't Quit Their Day Jobs.”
Five wacky things Olympians have done with their medals
- Team U.S.A. Women’s Soccer player Christie Rampone keeps her medals in her pots and pans. Her rationale? Who’s going to look there? They will now.
- U.S.A. men’s basketball won a disappointing bronze medal at the 2004 Olympic games in Atlanta. Unhappy with the teams’ performance, Carmelo Anthony gave his bronze medal to a family member who auctioned it off for $14,000.
- Sprinter Carl Lewis put his 1987 medal in his father’s casket at his funeral. He told his mom that he was going to go back and get another one. And he did.
- Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko sold his medal from the 1996 Olympics for a reported $1 million with the proceeds going to a children’s charity he started with his brother.
- And who wouldn’t think to look there? Other honorable mentions go to a school locker, their agent’s house, in the nightstand and in the nail polish drawer. Then there’s the always popular sock drawer which is where a slew of Olympic athletes store their medals including Apolo Ohno, Natalie Coughlin, Mary Lou Retton and Sue Bird.
Summer Olympics
- Tough break. Beach volleyball sensation Kerri Walsh Jennings suffered her first ever Olympic loss last night - she was previously 26-0. Walsh Jennings and her partner, April Ross, lost in the semifinals to a gritty but good Brazilian team. The women will now battle the other Brazilian team for bronze tonight.
- A dream come true. Simone Biles won her fifth medal of the Rio Olympics, (four gold and one bronze). Biles then received the shock of her life, something better than a medal; she met her crush actor Zac Efron. Biles admitted earlier in the Olympics that she has a life-size cutout of Efron in her room. She may be invincible in the Olympic arena, but she’s still a 19-year-old girl.
- Let’s get down. Allyson Felix became the winningest track and field athlete in U.S.A. history with seven medals. Felix brought home a silver in the 400m when she lost out on the gold in a photo finish, losing to Bahamas’ Shaunae Miller who dove across the finish line to win.
- A different kind of medal. U.S.A. triple jumper Will Claye won the silver medal and then jumped into the stands and proposed to his hurdler girlfriend to make it “the best day of his life.” Marriage proposals have been dominating the headlines of the Olympics where everyone is handing out the hardware.
Overtime
- Boys will be boys. Kansas City Royals (baseball) found a praying mantis in their dugout which they dubbed the #RallyMantis. The bug became a good luck charm, “guiding” the team on a 5-1 streak. Unfortunately, it was a bug and not a Jedi and it died. (Insert crying emoji here). As luck would have it, on Monday night another praying mantis appeared in the Royals dugout and it guided them to a win that night.
Sideline stat
- U.S.A. women’s gymnastics captain, affectionately known as "Grandma" by her teammates, 22-year-old Aly Raisman has won three medals in Rio which makes her the second-most-decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast of all time, one behind Shannon Miller.
Coaches’ Corner
- Today’s coaches’ corner is brought to you by a double dose of sportsmanship:
- American Abbey D’Agostino trained her entire life to run the 5,000m race in the Olympics. During her race, New Zealand runner Nikki Hamblin tripped and then D’Agostina stumbled over her, injuring her knee. D'Agostino helped Hamblin up and while not in a position to win, they finished the race.
- Jamaica’s Usain Bolt is one of the most popular athletes at the Games but during a post-race interview we saw what kind of person he really is. Bolt paused his chat to honor the playing the U.S.A. national anthem. Respect.
The Rundown: Weekend Wrap Up Edition - Monday Already?
Weekends were made for binge watching right? Good because that justifies the indent in our couch from the non-stop Olympic coverage.
In non-Olympic news, preseason football is happening and the start of the season is looming. You know what that means? Fantasy football drafts are starting. Would you be interested in joining a Last Night’s Game fantasy football league complete with coaching and Fantasy Football 101? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook or via email.
Always learning,
The Last Night’s Game Team
NFL (National Football League)
- Get is started. It may have only been a preseason game but the vibes around the L.A. Coliseum were electric. Shattering NFL U.S. preseason attendance records, close to 90,000 fans came out to see the Los Angeles Rams play their first professional game in L.A. since 1994. In the end, the Rams beat the Cowboys. The Rams moved to L.A. from St. Louis this season.
Summer Olympics
- Don’t let it go to your head. Men’s and women’s basketball completed the group stages undefeated. The men’s team has had a few close games while the women have dominated their opponents. The quarterfinals start tomorrow.
- You better sit down for this. In an Olympics full of firsts, we’ve compiled a mind blowing list of Olympic firsts from this weekend.
- With her win in women's tennis singles, Tennis player Monica Puig won Puerto Rico’s first ever gold medal.
- Usain Bolt won the 100m sprint, becoming the first man to accomplish that feat in three straight Olympics.
- American Michelle Carter won gold in the shot put, becoming first American woman to win gold in the sport.
- Simone Biles won again. Yesterday she became the first U.S. woman to win gold on the vault and the first (male or female) to win three Olympic golds in a single Games in gymnastics. If you haven’t seen this girl carry out her craft, do yourself a favor and watch her compete again tonight.
- Justin Rose made Great Britain proud when he won the first gold medal in golf since 1904. American Matt Kuchar won the bronze medal. Golf is slated to be one of the top events in Tokyo 2020. Start practicing your swing.
Overtime
- Thieves in Rio have taken picking on the blue hairs to a new level. American Gold Media swimmer, Ryan Lochte (whose dyed blonde hair turned blue from the Olympic pool's chlorine) and three other swimmers were robbed at gunpoint. Their taxi was pulled over by armed men posing as police officers. No one was injured but their wallets and phones were taken. Notorious for his partying and his enjoyment of Tinder, we're curious what the thieves will find on Lochte’s phone? Jackpot!
Sideline Stat
- Singapore offers $1 million (SGD) as a reward for winning an Olympic gold medal. Until this weekend no Singaporean athlete has brought home a gold medal or any medal for that matter. On Saturday, Singaporean Joseph Schooling defied the odds and beat Michael Phelps in the 100m butterfly, earning Singapore’s first ever Olympic medal. Gold medalist Schooling, who swims for the University of Texas, was met with a hero's welcome when he returned to Singapore, which included a standing ovation in Parliament (first ever for an athlete) and a selfie with the prime minister.
Coaches’ corner
- Phelps won his final race of his career, bringing his career medal total to an unprecedented 28 Olympic medals, 23 of those are gold. He already has his retirement planned - Phelps is set to coach the swim and dive team at Arizona State University.