Ryan Held Helps USA Win Gold in 4×100 Free Relay

For now, Pat Forde, Yahoo Sports:

Rookie third leg Ryan Held conquered nerves and held serve, and veteran anchor Nathan Adrian brought it home. An American team some thought might not make the podium won gold by .61 seconds over defending Olympic champion France, and 1.45 over pre-race favorite Australia.

Phelp’s second leg swim — particularly his beyond-belief 50-meter turn — was his best ever, and Held didn’t give any on the third leg.

More to come…

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Home Forums Ryan Held Helps USA Win Gold in 4×100 Free Relay

Viewing 25 posts - 1 through 25 (of 26 total)
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  • #105304
    StateFans
    Keymaster

    For now: Yahoo Sports More to come…
    [See the full post at: Ryan Held Helps USA Win Gold in 4×100 Free Relay]

    #105306
    Pack78
    Participant

    Great race-Ryan looked like he was blown away by the achievement after the race, but certainly NOT during the event.

    #105307
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    Some awesome sauce,last night in Rio.

    #105308
    ncsu1987
    Participant

    This was amazing to watch. I stopped breathing a couple of times – those boys were absolutely amazing.

    People will be talking about Phelps’ risky launch and that unbelievable turn for years.

    #105309
    MrPlywood
    Participant

    Great race to watch, congrats to Ryan and the team.

    From choppack in his similar post, “College will feel a little weird after that I imagine.” Of course I’m keeping up with the Canadians too, and they have a couple of 16 year olds on the women’s team who helped them to a Bronze in the Women’s 4×100 free, their first medal in that event in 40 years. And one of those 16 y.o. women, Penny Oleksiak, got a Silver in the 100 fly. Good stuff. I can imagine that high school will be a little different for them. Canada has been working hard to shed the “just happy to be here” mentality over the last decade or so, and the results are showing.

    #105310
    44rules
    Participant

    Nice to know any good Wolfpacker news. Great showing.

    Communism is not love. Communism is a hammer which we use to crush the enemy. Mao Zedong

    #105316
    choppack1
    Participant

    Yea – it’s hard to beat the excitement of the short relays for big events. As someone a former mediocre swim team member and current solid triathlon swimmer, I geek out on the swimming. And when I swam – the relays were the most intense event and were my favorite.

    I was nervous for Held last night. The young man handled the moment very well and I thought his post-race comments were very telling. (“I said to myself it’s just another 100 meter delay.”)

    The mental makeup of these successful Olympians is just as important as the physical attributes.

    #105323
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    How’d ya like that backstroke gold, Chops?

    Is it true that all the swimming styles are based on life-saving techniques?

    (I know the answer.)

    BTW. My mom was a 1952 Olympic qualifier swimmer. Too bad she met my dad in 51ish. LOL

    #105325
    LRM
    Keymaster

    I read an idea I like: in the events like swimming, the top lane should have an average swimmer (like a decent triathlete would be), just as a point of reference to how truly amazing these athletes are by comparison.

    I swim regularly, which has helped me become a strong swimmer. But I’m mostly self-taught without proper mechanics, so I’m blown away by even decent-trained swimmers.

    #105326
    MrPlywood
    Participant

    Here’s something really interesting, a comparison on a segment called The Equalizer, part of The Nature of Things on Canadian TV. They pitted a virtual Mark Spitz swimming his WR pace against Paul Biedermann , the current WR holder who swam a full ten seconds faster than Spitz’s time. Beidermann wore the suit that is not outlawed when he set the record. In the comparison, he wore a Speedo like the one Mark wore. The result? Spitz won.

    Biedermann and Spitz, The Equalizer

    #105333
    choppack1
    Participant

    Cow – it was cool watching the us dominate that. Happy for the “old” guy.

    The event I was on the edge of my seat was the women’s 100 M backstroke. I have lived in Winston for last 20 years so I was pulling for Baker pretty hard. My dog hasn’t seen me yell this much at the TV in a while (in a good way.)

    The women’s breaststroke was awesome too.

    Cow – you have some good bloodlines… explains some things. I have some decent ones on one side of the fam, but nothing Olympian.

    Lrm – my swim is about as good as it can get for a 46 year old who spends 30 minutes a week in the water. I finish in the top 3rd or better of the water in pretty much every race I enter. It’s not a weakness – which separates me from a lot of triathletes.

    Plywood – interesting info on Spitz. What I that same dude was covered in hair like he was?

    #105338
    YogiNC
    Participant

    How’d ya like that backstroke gold, Chops?

    BTW. My mom was a 1952 Olympic qualifier swimmer. Too bad she met my dad in 51ish. LOL

    Ummmm… if she hadn’t you might not be here CD, and that would be sad for all of us who enjoy your wisdom (and at times terse commentary)

    Smarter than the average bear

    #105339
    LRM
    Keymaster

    Chop, the hardest part of a triathlon (for me, anyway) is that all the pool training conditions you for the swim, but the pool training doesn’t prepare you at all for the chaos of an open water ocean swim.

    My first race at Oak Island, I wasn’t even past the breakers and I’d been kicked in the face, pushed under, swallowed seawater and been stung by several jelly fish — what the hell did I get myself into? But once you calm that initial panic, find a rhythm and then finally hit the beach, you’re hooked.

    #105340
    gso packbacker
    Participant

    Granted, I have enjoyed the results in the pool in Rio, but there is something about Olympic swimming that makes me want to watch even if the US isn’t dominating. Could be Spitz in ’72 (family even made a trek to the pool in Munich while were there years ago) or a distinct appreciation of these athletes as I am one of the least buoyant people I know.

    Even tried to take up swimming again last year, but so disheartening to watch people glide through the pool with a random stroke here and there while I am flurry of activity just to prevent drowning. Yeah, I tried the flippers and all of the other gadgets they had, but eventually gave it up for running and biking.

    #105341
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    LRM…LRM. I give a wide swept bow to you. We all have our own methods to push the limits, sometimes bordering on self destruction…what an honorable way to go.

    😉

    #105342
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    Ummmm… if she hadn’t you might not be here CD, and that would be sad for all of us who enjoy your wisdom (and at times terse commentary)

    Thanks, Yogi. We all need that kind’a pull from time to time.

    To clarify about my Mom, she miscarried shortly before the, then, trials. A coach’s wife she would become.

    #105346
    LRM
    Keymaster

    Cow, a Navy SEAL I’m not. But what I lack with zero athletic ability I more than make up for with pure stubbornness.

    #105355
    choppack1
    Participant

    Lrm – that’s why in those open water swim I try to get either on the far inside or outside at the start…then I try to work my way out of the herd.

    Also, if the bowies are to my right I will lift my head totally out of the water (since I typically breathe left side.) Those things have helped me avoid kicks in a lot of the swims I have been in. …but also have been very lucky too. (Knocking on wood.)

    Also, how bout the 43 year old lady who won the time trials. Awesome.

    #105357
    ruffles31
    Keymaster

    I don’t see what Team Handball has never taken off in America. I went to the gold medal match in 96 in Atlanta. It was awesome. High scoring, end to end action, what’s not to like.

    Even Luke DeCock thinks so.

    Team Handball

    #105360
    choppack1
    Participant

    Ruffles – that would be because we have football and basketball.

    This sport just kind of reminds me of dodgeball.

    #105361
    choppack1
    Participant

    Also, this should not be confused with the sport that was popular in the 70s and 80s. I imagine we have some on the board who were pdg at it.

    #105363
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    Yep. My baseball coach, Sam Esposito, was a world ranked handball player.

    With each Olympics I get infatuated with a sport out of my realm. This time it’s field hockey.

    How can you not get juiced about…Katie BAM?!!!

    #105364
    choppack1
    Participant

    Phelps wins his 4th 200im going away.

    And cowdog, since you brought up the field hockeyians, I will just say that at least for a couple of nights, I would be willing to comfort the Russian swimmer accused of juicing. After all, she has already shown that she’s loose with society’s expectations.

    #105365
    YogiNC
    Participant

    I will just say that at least for a couple of nights, I would be willing to comfort the Russian swimmer accused of juicing. After all, she has already shown that she’s loose with society’s expectations.

    Chop, I CANNOT imagine what you’re implying. Would you be testing her yourself, possibly with probes, to determine if she was using banned substances?

    Smarter than the average bear

    #105463
    mak4dpak
    Participant

    Congrats on the gold, but this story has gotten old. Still waitin for a football post, as I am sure, as are most. Enlighten us! Go Pack!

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