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Jason Lezak was the hero in the 4×100 Freestyle Relay. Though Michael Phelps started off great in the first 100 meters, the team was trailing behind the anchor leg against Alain Bernard of France. But there was no way Lezak was going to let the French stay true to his word. With only 25 meters to go, Lezak slowly inched his way closer to Bernard while the crowd was wild with excitement. The two lunged for the wall together. Guess what?! The American Team won by a fingertip! His teammates, especially Phelps, went wild. They broke the world record set by the earlier American team in the prelims by almost a full 4 seconds!

L-R: Cullen Jones, Jason Lezak, Michael Phelps, Garret Weber-Gale

The irony of it all is that Lezak is the oldest in the team at 32 years old. He was a full body length behind Bernard after the final turn. Yet, he managed to outswim the younger and stronger Frenchman. Even Bernard couldn’t believe what happened. By the time he realized the loss, the time was already registered on the clock and the Americans were already celebrating.

The win kept Phelp’s bid to break Mark Spitz’s 8 Olympic Gold medals still afloat. It was a sweet victory for the Americans following Alain Bernard’s promise to smash the team and get the gold. It was a close call though. There is no doubt that the French was a team that couldn’t be easily beat. However, Lezak’s spirit and the Americans’ will to take home the gold after losing it in the last 2 Olympics were more than what the French could handle. Maybe next time Bernard will know better than to rile the Americans and give them more motivation to get the gold. In sports, I still believe the mind and heart plays a large part in winning the game. Ask Jesse Owens how it felt to run the victory lap in the 1936 Berlin Olympics with Hitler watching in the sidelines at the height of his propaganda to promote Aryan supremacy.

Here’s a video of the last leg of the race for those who want to see how the the US won the 4×100 freestyle relay by a fingertip care of Jason Lezak.

Just a I figured, Michael Phelps was all fired-up Sunday and broke his own world record for the 400 meter Individual Medley with an amazing time of 4 minutes, 3.84 seconds. With his family and President Bush cheering him on, Phelps was emotional at the medal stand while the American flag was raised and the Star-Spangled Banner was in the background. He plans to break Mark Spitz’s record of 7 gold medals in the Olympics.

Meanwhile, Alain Bernard of France, still insists that they will break the Americans in the 4×100 freestyle relay. The Frenchman may be biting off more than he can chew with the preliminary American squad breaking the world record Sunday night. The team that broke the record was comprised of Nathan Adrian, Cullen Jones, Benwildman-Tobriner, and Matt Grevers. But only Jones will join the team in the finals while the rest of the guys have already done their job. Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Jason Lezak, and Jones will compete in the finals and give the French a run for their money.

What did I say about challenging the Americans? Anyway, it’s going to be a hell of a fight for the French, especially with President Bush going out of his way to support the American team in the Olympics.

Here’s a link of the video of the 400 meter Individual Medley won by Phelps.

WATCH PHELPS WIN THE 400 M INIVIDUAL MEDLEY

Alain Bernard, current world record holder for the 100-meter freestyle just announced that the French freestyle relay team’s goal is to smash the American team. The world record for the 4×100 freestyle is currently held by the Americans which the French team are running after. Reports have circulated that the most recent time clocked in by the French relay team was good enough to beat the European record and just 0.08 seconds away from world record.

So, are the American swimmers shaking in their boots? Nah! If anything, Bernard got them all fired-up. And knowing Michael Phelps, remarks like these serve more as fuel than deterrents in the water. The remark was most likely triggered by reports that the American swimming team currently has the best collection of male swimmers in Olympic history. Along with Phelps in the team are Cullen Jones and Jason Lezak who were part of the team that made the world record in the 4×100 freestyle in Victoria, British Columbia in 2006. It is likely that they will be joined by Garret Weber-Gale, the current American record holder of the 100-meter freestyle.

Swimming is one of my favorite events in the Olympics, along with track and field, diving, and basketball. There’s never a dull moment in these events. And with the Frenchman’s remark, looks like the 4×100 freestyle is the event to watch.