Category Archives: olympics

Nathan Adrian wins gold in men’s 100m freestyle at 2012 Summer Olympics

Nathan Adrian wins gold in men's 100m freestyle at 2012 Summer Olympics

Yesterday, part Chinese swimmer Nathan Adrian out-touched Australia’s James Magnussen by one-hundredth of a second to win gold in the men’s 100m freestyle. He jumped out to a good start in the first half, touching third at the wall. But the real race came down to the last 50 meters going stroke-for-stroke down the homestretch against James “The Missle” Magnussen. Adrian touched in 47.52 seconds, while Magnussen, the 2011 world champion in the 100, in 47.53 seconds. In that split second, Nathan Adrian became the first American to win the event in 24 years.

“People are coming back so fast these days,” Adrian said. “I’m a little more known for going out strong and kind of hurting on the way home, so I wanted to conserve a little more energy (in the first half) and come home strong this time. This guy’s an incredible closer, and I knew it was going to take a lot more than I’d ever done before to keep up.”

Nathan Adrian wins gold in men's 100m freestyle in 2012 Summer OlympicsNathan Adrian wins gold in men's 100m freestyle in 2012 Summer Olympics

“The most important lesson I learned from the 2011 World Championships is that every time I’m in a heat, I rid myself of externalities,” Adrian said. “(In my head) we’re like a group of fourth graders in the school yard racing for the wall. That’s where I’m most confident in my racing, and that’s what I tried to do tonight.”

“I kind of touched the wall and thought, ‘Oh, sweet, I’ve won my heat,’” Adrian said. “Then there’s 10 to 15 seconds where it kind of sunk in, and I had to double check because I didn’t want to be that guy who was celebrating and got eighth or something.”

He joins fellow HAPA athlete Kyla Ross in winning gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics

Nathan Adrian wins gold in men’s 100m freestyle at 2012 Summer Olympics

More about Nathan Adrian
Adrian’s mother, Cecilia, is Chinese and was born and raised in Hong Kong. She move to the U.S. in 1968 and met Adrian’s father, Jim, at the University of Portland. Cecilia has never been to mainland China but gave all three of her children a Chinese middle name. Nathan’s roughly means “little pony,” which Cecilia explains is representative of “the most precious things one can possess.” Adrian has an older sister, Donella, who swam at Arizona State, and an other brother, Justin, who swam at Washington. His nickname is “Bok Choi,” given to him by girls on one of his swim teams after they discovered his Asian heritage.

Kristi Yamaguchi endorses Mitt Romney

Kristi Yamaguchi endorses Mitt Romney

Olympic gold medalist and World Champion in figure skating Kristi Yamaguchi endorses GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in this Olympics focused ad. She touts his stewardship in support of the 2002 Winter Olympic games in Salt Lake City. In the ad, she states ““Mitt Romney brought a huge sense of hope.” Yamaguchi won gold in 1992 and was a goodwill ambassador during the 2002 Winter Games.

Kristi Yamaguchi endorses Mitt Romney

Kim Yu-Na Wins Olympic Gold With Record Score

Kim Yu-Na destroyed the Olympic record for the highest score in women’s figure skating with a world-record combined score of 228.56. The South Korean took the gold medal easily winning with a 23.06-point margin, while Mao Asada of Japan picked up silver. (Watch The Queen’s performance here.) USA was shut out of the podium, but Mirai Nagasu finished 4th overall about 12 points away from bronze. (See her performance here.) Look for this 16 year old to continue to be a strong contender in the skating world in the future.

More Asian Americans at the 2010 Winter Olympics are still competing.

Kim Yu-Na Wins Olympic Gold With Record Score

Kristi Yamaguchi commentary on female figure skaters

Julie Chu wins silver in Women’s Hockey

Julie Chu and the USA women’s hockey team won the silver yesterday. Team USA came to Vancouver with the gold medal in sight. However, the Canadian team had other plans. They shutout Team USA 2-0. (See the full game here.) Julie Chu adds more hardware to her Olympics medal collection with a bronze from 2006 and silver from 2002, but she’ll have to wait another 4 years for that elusive gold medal.

Keep your eyes on more Asian Americans at the 2010 Winter Olympics

Julie Chu wins silver in Women’s Hockey

Mirai Nagasu x Kristi Yamaguchi on the Today Show

Watch Kristi Yamaguchi interview Mirai Nagasu at her family’s sushi restaurant Sushi Kiyosuzu in Arcadia, CA. Mirai talks about how she got to where she is today. She trained with gold medalist Evan Lysacek, so she in good company when she takes the ice with speed and grace.

Look for more Asian Americans competing in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Kristi Yamaguchi gives the lowdown on the Asian female figure skaters in the 2010 Winter Olympics

Apolo Ohno and his dad on the Today Show

Check out Apolo Ohno and his dad Yuki Ohno on the Today show talking about Apolo Ohno’s 7th Olympic medal. That’s one proud dad talking about his son.

Look for more Asian Americans competing in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Apolo Ohno and his dad on the Today Show

Apolo Ohno also talks to about breaking Bonnie Blair’s record to become the most decorated athlete of the Winter games. He covers a lot from the 1000m speedskating race to Michael Phelps and his dad watching from the stands. He comes full circle competing.