Going For The Gold

On the periodic table of elements, it is Au.

We know it better as gold.

It has always been the stuff of legends – El Dorado, the lost city of gold. Sutter’s Mill and the California gold rush.

And it is the epitome of Olympic success – the gold medal, though it isn’t actually made entirely of gold. Dirty little secret – gold and silver medals are 92.5% silver, but gold medals are plated with at least six grams of gold. The last gold medals made strictly of gold were issued in 1912. Bronze medals are made of bronze and tin. But we know what they mean and what the excellence they represent.

Tuesday night the U.S. Olympians staged their own gold rush. In summary:

Swimmer Michael Phelps won the 20th and 21st gold medals of his spectacular career, anchoring the victorious 400-meter freestyle relay team after winning the 200-meter butterfly by a mere .04 of a second. Katie Ledecky collected her second gold medal with a narrow victory in the 200-meter freestyle. She’s in a great position to win a third in the 800 free on Friday.

The women’s gymnastics team also brought home the “Au” medal. The U.S. posted a team score of 184.897, more than eight points ahead of silver medalist Russia and almost nine more than bronze medalist China in capturing its second straight Olympic title and third overall.

All five American gymnasts will compete later in the games, with Simone Biles and Aly Raisman in the all-around on Thursday.

There’s gold in Rio, and the Americans, like prospectors and fortune-hunters before them, see no sin in mining with both hands (and feet).
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman