2012 Olympics: Host Britain Wins Its First Two Gold Medals
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MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images(LONDON) — On a day that began with a scandal over thrown badminton games, Britain collected its first two gold medals of the 2012 Olympics with wins in rowing and cycling.
On Dorney Lake, rowers Heather Stanning and Helen Glover dominated the women’s coxless pairs for the host’s first gold medal. Stanning and Glover quickly opened a wide lead that never closed as New Zealand took silver and Australia took bronze.
The pair were the first women rowers ever to win a gold medal for Britain.
The British were expecting cyclist Mark Cavendish to deliver the host country’s first medal on the first day, but a Kazakhstani cyclist beat him in an upset victory.
British cyclist and Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, though, did not disappoint in the men’s time trial, cruising to victory for his country’s second gold medal.
Earlier in the day, U.S. cyclist Kristin Armstrong won her second gold medal in the women’s time trial.
The women’s badminton scandal cast a shadow on the rest of the day’s events. After Chinese players were noticed deliberately losing a preliminary match to earn a favorable seed in the competition’s next round, six of their South Korean and Indonesian counterparts followed suit, leading to the disqualification of eight players. The badminton federation rejected the appeals of the South Korean players, and the Indonesian players quickly dropped their appeals.
In tennis, Novak Djokovic handily beat Australian Lleyton Hewitt, while Venus Williams slogged along against German Angelique Kerber.
Both Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte qualified for the semifinals in the men’s 200-meter individual medley, setting up a dramatic race for later today.
U.S. swimmers Cammile Adams and Kathleen Hersey will compete this afternoon in the women’s 200-meter butterfly final.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio