Olympic Games 2008

Phelps by a feather, Bolt by a mile

Article published on the 2008-08-16 Latest update 2008-08-16 15:41 TU

Michael Phelps after winning his 7th gold medal.
(Photo: Reuters)

American Swimmer Michael Phelps won his 7th gold medal by 0.01 seconds, while Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt wins 100 metre gold by 0.2 seconds.

Phelps won his 7^th gold medal at the Beijing games Saturday morning, beating out Serbian swimmer Milorad Cavic by 0.01 seconds in the 200 metre butterfly. Phelps has now tied Mark Spitz’s 1972 record set in Munich for most gold medals won in a single games.

Phelps will swim for his 8^th gold on Sunday along with his teammates in the 4x100metre medley relay. It’s an event the Americans have never lost in a non-boycotted Olympics.

Then Saturday night, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt blasted into history in the 100m sprint final, beating the next best runner by 0.2 seconds. Bolt set a new world record of 9.69 seconds, beating his own record of 9.72 set in New York City at the end of May.

Bolt will soon run the 200 metres, and attempt to become the first person to win gold in both events since Carl Lewis did so in the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.