OK, I was wrong. Not since I said “I do” have I been this wrong.

After Michael Phelps accomplished all he did, I wrote “How could there possibly be anything at the Olympics in week two that could hold my interest.”

There was. There was a lot.

Gymnastics, track, beach volleyball, the women's discus, water polo and boy, oh boy men's volleyball. There was more drama and excitement in week two than there has been during the entire run of “Big Brother”.

Little itty-bitty gymnast Shawn Johnson - with more class in her 4-foot, 9-inch frame than just about anyone in sports - finally won a well-deserved gold medal in the individual balance beam. That little pixie should have won a gold medal for just that smile, which she flashed every time someone just nipped her for the top spot.

If the U.S. had more athletes like Johnson, what a great representation our team could display.

In the men's 100 and 200, I was thinking Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson was the fastest man in the world.

Advertisement

With great confidence and pizzazz, Jamaica's Usain Bolt dashed into our conciousness with a bravado not usually seen outside of football. How funny was it during a post-race press conference when he stopped talking just to watch himself on the big screen, then marvel at his feat.

World records in the 100 (9.69 seconds) and the once untouchable 200 (19.30). Two huge records, one huge ego. Good television there, my friends.

The guys and the gals took home the gold in beach volleyball. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh - two in a row. Nice job ladies. Then Solvang resident Todd Rogers and his partner Phil Dalhausser took the gold in a hard-fought men's bracket. And Rogers wasn't the only gold medal winner from the Central Coast.

Stephanie Brown-Trafton is an Arroyo Grande and Cal poly grad. Now a resident of Sacramento, Brown-Trafton went into the discus finals as an afterthought. All it took was one throw to win the gold. Her first throw was the longest of the night - and she is at the prime discus age. Another gold in 2012 at the London Games? Why not.

It is a good feeling for the staff at a local paper to be able to put a local flavor on stuff happening a half a world away. Hopefully, in four years we will have locals to follow, and they also will be able to win it all. No pressure Miss Hasay.

Can you believe the run the men's water polo team made? Ranked No. 9 in the world, the team defended its way into the gold medal game against world No. 1 Hungary.

Coach Terry Schroeder - from Santa Barbara, I might add - said it all: “ Defense is the key.”

Water polo played outstanding defense to surprise a lot of people.

What can I say about the men's volleyball team? After the tragedy at the beginning of the games, when coach Hugh McCutcheon's father-in-law Todd Bachman was murdered, everyone asked if the team and its coach would be able to keep focused.

Well, the answer was clearly yes. In an amazing run, the team battled down to the last point, finally outlasting Brazil in the gold medal game after five sets.

During an emotional medal ceremony, I couldn't help but wonder what each kid was thinking. They won the gold for themselves, they won the gold for their coach, they won the gold for Mr. Bachman - they won the gold for anyone who has ever had to fight through adversity to reach their goal.

There was some heartbreak during some events, like LoLo Jones clipping hurdle number nine with a huge lead, to finish out of the money. Talk about the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat - to quote the late great Jim McKay - Jones' agony led to the thrill for race winner Dawn Harper, a U.S. teammate.

Outside of a long and boring opening ceremony, and a not-so-long, but just as boring closing ceremony, I think this was one of the most exciting Olympics in a long, long time.

Now, if we could have only seen it live, just like the Eastern and Central Time zones.

Of course, my grandma is happy because “Days of Our Lives” is back at its regular time slot.

Sports writer Brad Memberto can be reached at 737-1055 or by e-mail to bmemberto@santamariatimes.com

August 27, 2008