:00:07. > :00:17.Tonight at 10.00pm, the best day yet for Team GB's athletes at
:00:17. > :00:18.
:00:18. > :00:23.London 2012. The crowd is going absolutely mad. A gold medal for
:00:23. > :00:25.Great Britain! Sir Chris Hoy takes a fifth Olympic title, equalling
:00:25. > :00:27.the British record of five gold medals.
:00:28. > :00:33.He and team-mates Jason Kenny and Philip Hindes triumph over France
:00:33. > :00:37.in the final of the men's team sprint. Knew the importance of what
:00:37. > :00:41.it was. I didn't want to let the boys down today. It was just
:00:41. > :00:43.immense pride to be able to do it in the UK in front of this crowd.
:00:43. > :00:45.It was just phenomenal. There was gold, too, for Peter
:00:45. > :00:52.Wilson in the double trap shooting event.
:00:52. > :00:56.Britain's canoeists took gold and silver in the two-man slalom.
:00:56. > :00:59.And there was an unexpected silver for Team GB in the judo.
:00:59. > :01:01.We'll be reporting on a day that's transformed Britain's position in
:01:01. > :01:10.the medals table. Also tonight:
:01:10. > :01:13.Kofi Annan, appointed by the UN to bring peace to Syria, has resigned.
:01:13. > :01:18.Action within weeks - the European Central Bank promises help to
:01:18. > :01:24.reduce borrowing costs for eurozone countries.
:01:25. > :01:27.And Olympic achievement on a takes his 20th medal - 16 of them
:01:27. > :01:31.gold. On BBC London, after this cyclist
:01:31. > :01:36.is killed near the Olympic Park, new calls for better safety
:01:36. > :01:46.measures, and why the Team GB gold medal rush is leaving even more
:01:46. > :02:01.
:02:01. > :02:04.Good evening from the Olympic Park on the best day yet for Team GB.
:02:04. > :02:07.Sir Chris Hoy has taken a fifth Olympic title. He and fellow
:02:07. > :02:10.cyclists Philip Hindes and Jason Kenny smashed the world record as
:02:10. > :02:13.they successfully defended their title in the men's team sprint. It
:02:13. > :02:16.was a welcome boost after Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish were
:02:16. > :02:26.disqualified in the women's team sprint. Our first report tonight is
:02:26. > :02:28.
:02:28. > :02:32.by our sports editor David Bond. The Velodrome is arguably the
:02:32. > :02:38.classiest venue on the Olympic Park, the perfect backdrop for a sport
:02:38. > :02:41.Britain has come to dominate. The country's track cyclists have
:02:42. > :02:47.already entered Olympic folklore - no wonder they could have sold it
:02:47. > :02:50.out countless times over. The challenge for Sir Chris Hoy and his
:02:50. > :02:54.team-mates, Jason Kenny and Philip Hindes, was to try to shut out the
:02:54. > :02:59.distractions and huge the home crowd's rapturous goodwill to
:02:59. > :03:02.inspire. The young Royals were on hand again and as if Chris Hoy and
:03:02. > :03:04.co needed any extra pressure, someone else was in the hunt for
:03:04. > :03:10.gold too. Prime Minister David Cameron has been waiting six days
:03:10. > :03:13.to see first hand a British triumph. Would tonight be the night? Britain
:03:13. > :03:18.are the reigning Olympic champions in the team sprint, but victory
:03:18. > :03:24.against France in the final was by no means certain. Hoy and Kenny
:03:24. > :03:29.were part of the sprint team which won in Beijing four years ago, but
:03:29. > :03:33.German-born Hindes was a late addition. It's going to be an
:03:33. > :03:37.absolute thriller. The 19-year-old didn't let his adopted country down,
:03:37. > :03:45.putting in a powerful first leg against the French, and after
:03:45. > :03:50.another magnificent lap from Kenny, it was left to Hoy to bring the
:03:50. > :03:56.team in in a world-record time. No matter who you are, this was no
:03:56. > :04:00.time to be reserved, as the curved roof of the Velodrome was taken off
:04:00. > :04:05.by the delirious crowd. The 36- year-old has tasted this sort of
:04:05. > :04:08.Olympic success before, but never at a home Games.
:04:08. > :04:12.I dug deeper than I have ever dug before, and I knew the importance
:04:12. > :04:16.of what it was. I didn't want to let the boys down. They have been
:04:16. > :04:21.riding so well today. It's just immense pride to be able to do it
:04:21. > :04:24.in front of this home crowd. It's phenomenal. Team GB officials are
:04:24. > :04:28.hoping this becomes a familiar refrain in the Velodrome over the
:04:28. > :04:32.next few days. We already knew that Sir Chris Hoy was very, very
:04:32. > :04:37.special, but his victory in the team sprint in front of an ecstatic
:04:37. > :04:44.home crowd has confirmed him as one of the icons of British sport.
:04:44. > :04:49.(Playing God Save the Queen) The Scot's place in history is now
:04:49. > :04:54.assured. He already has 11 World Championship titles - six Olympic
:04:54. > :05:00.medals, stretching back to the Sydney Games in 2000, and now,
:05:00. > :05:03.after tonight's performance, five golds, taking him level with
:05:03. > :05:07.Britain's greatest Olympian Sir Steve Redgrave. Really fantastic,
:05:07. > :05:11.so many medals and so much dedication, and that team is
:05:11. > :05:15.obviously just a remarkable group of people. But it was a night of
:05:15. > :05:19.mixed emotions for Team GB as Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish
:05:19. > :05:24.suffered heartbreak in the women's sprint. They thought they'd made
:05:24. > :05:28.the final. However, Pendleton went too early during a change-over, and
:05:28. > :05:33.the pair were relegated. It's just of those things that happened, you
:05:33. > :05:36.know? It's not Jess's fault. It's not my fault. We're both partly to
:05:36. > :05:42.blame, really. We were probably just a bit too overwhelmed by the
:05:42. > :05:46.whole thing, a bit excited by our ride and a bit eager. The gloomy
:05:46. > :05:54.mood was quickly lifted when Hoy and his team delivered another
:05:54. > :05:58.Olympic fairy tale. The word "legend" is often overused in sport,
:05:58. > :06:02.but with one more shot at gold next week this modern-day sporting
:06:02. > :06:07.superhero is standing on the edge of greatness.
:06:07. > :06:10.Well, in the space of just five minutes this afternoon, Britain's
:06:10. > :06:13.canoeists took both gold and silver in the two-man canoe slalom, and
:06:13. > :06:15.Peter Wilson won gold in the double trap shooting event. Their wins
:06:15. > :06:21.transformed Team GB's position in the medals table, as our
:06:22. > :06:27.correspondent Joe Wilson reports. In Woolwich, south-east London,
:06:27. > :06:30.they built a �30 million temporary venue so shooting would feel part
:06:31. > :06:36.of the London Olympics. Maybe sometimes the sport feels
:06:36. > :06:39.peripheral, not today. Peter is the double trap record holder, but he
:06:39. > :06:44.had one reason for participating in shooting - to win Olympic gold.
:06:44. > :06:51.Now, this sport is about precision of the mind and endurance.
:06:51. > :06:54.APPLAUSE Two targets are released
:06:55. > :06:59.simultaneously, each taking fire at each of them once, and so far, the
:06:59. > :07:03.final has been going about ten minutes, and Peter Wilson's missed
:07:03. > :07:08.just once. There are 25 rounds of shooting in the final, with five
:07:08. > :07:13.left, Wilson had an uncomfortable lead, then the unthinkable - he
:07:13. > :07:16.missed with both shots. Take note of that man's reaction. It came
:07:16. > :07:22.down to the final two targets - Wilson had to hit one to win. He
:07:22. > :07:26.got both. Did you feel nervous? Yeah, wow,
:07:26. > :07:31.did I feel nervous. I looked across and allowed myself to have a quick
:07:31. > :07:37.look at the board and I realised maybe - one. I thought, let's do
:07:37. > :07:42.the pair. Let's do this and call it a day, and wow! Peter Wilson had
:07:42. > :07:46.banked everything on this gold. At one stage, he'd relocated to Dubai
:07:46. > :07:49.to learn from the best coach - remember him from the crowd? His
:07:50. > :07:56.coach was there to greet him. At its best, the Olympics touch
:07:56. > :08:01.everyone. Shooting and canoe slalom belong in
:08:01. > :08:04.the same games. This pair shared that feeling of triumph, but their
:08:04. > :08:07.sport is about adrenaline and strength. Their performance came
:08:07. > :08:12.out of the blue. Ranked sixth in the world, they produced a perfect
:08:12. > :08:16.run at the Lee Valley White Water Centre to shock the rest of the
:08:16. > :08:19.pair. Last to go the second British pair, and guess what - they were
:08:19. > :08:24.storming the course too. When they finished their run therefore,
:08:24. > :08:28.something astonishing to report - Bailee and To the in first and
:08:28. > :08:32.their training partners second, gold and silver. The sport had
:08:32. > :08:37.never known anything like it in Britain. Opponents couldn't believe
:08:37. > :08:42.their lives. The British medallists could barely squeeze into the
:08:42. > :08:46.interview. You are the Olympic champions. It's weird. It doesn't...
:08:46. > :08:48.It's weird. Doesn't seem quite like that's what could be happening.
:08:48. > :08:52.This was another venue built at great expense for the Olympics for
:08:52. > :08:55.this purpose. Gemma Gibbons has delivered
:08:55. > :08:58.Britain's first Olympic judo medal in 12 years, defeating the world
:08:58. > :09:01.champion in the semi-finals to win silver. The 25 year-old was brought
:09:01. > :09:04.up in Greenwich just a few miles from the judo venue, and she
:09:04. > :09:14.recently spent six months out of the sport after surgery. Our sports
:09:14. > :09:15.
:09:15. > :09:19.correspondent James Pearce has the It's hard to imagine how much
:09:19. > :09:23.tougher it could be for Gibbons. Let's hear the roar.
:09:23. > :09:27.A semifinal against a French world champion - Gemma Gibbon had defied
:09:27. > :09:31.the odds to get to this stage. Now she was just one more shock win
:09:31. > :09:37.from an Olympic medal. With no points on the board after the
:09:37. > :09:41.regulation five minutes, the contest went to golden score -
:09:41. > :09:47.judo's equivalent of sudden-death extra time.
:09:47. > :09:51.As she realised the enormity of what she'd achieved, she wept. What
:09:51. > :09:59.a victory for a whom who had grown up just down the road in Greenwich.
:09:59. > :10:05.What a moment for British judo. As she looked up to the sky, she
:10:05. > :10:10.mouthed the words "I love you, mum." Her mother Jeanette died of
:10:10. > :10:13.leukaemia eight years ago. In the final it was her opponent who wore
:10:13. > :10:16.white, the American Kayla Harrison stood between Gibbons and a goad
:10:16. > :10:21.medal. This is what makes the Olympics so special. This morning
:10:21. > :10:25.only the keenest sports fans - even Gemma Gibbon - now the whole eyes
:10:25. > :10:30.of the nation are on her. This time the crowd didn't get the result
:10:30. > :10:34.they wanted. And it's not going to be gold. Gibbons had to settle for
:10:34. > :10:38.silver, but she already had so many reasons to be proud. What a day,
:10:38. > :10:42.Gemma? Yeah, a brilliant, brilliant day, really, really happy. At the
:10:42. > :10:47.start of the day, realistically, what were you thinking you could
:10:47. > :10:51.achieve On my best day I was hoping I could get near the medals, maybe
:10:51. > :10:55.top seven. I have exceeded that, so I am over the moon. An Olympic
:10:55. > :11:00.medal in her home city in front of thousands of patriotic supporters.
:11:00. > :11:05.Gemma Gibbon -- Gemma Gibbons can tell you that dreams sometimes do
:11:05. > :11:08.come true. So let's take a look at the
:11:08. > :11:18.transformation in Team GB's standing in the medals table after
:11:18. > :11:29.
:11:29. > :11:33.It's a good time for us to join our sports editor David Bond in the
:11:33. > :11:37.Olympic Park to reflect on today's successes. What did you make of it?
:11:37. > :11:41.Huw, it has been one of the most successful days in recent Olympic
:11:41. > :11:45.history for Team GB, three golds, three silvers, and Team GB sitting
:11:45. > :11:49.very prettily in fifth place looking well set to deliver on that
:11:49. > :11:52.fourth place medal target, and you sensed some real momentum building
:11:53. > :11:56.behind the team, but you know what was really interesting today was
:11:56. > :12:02.the contrast in the sports which really delivered success. Yes, we
:12:02. > :12:05.had track cycling. Yes, we had rowing but we also had less fancied
:12:05. > :12:09.sports like shooting and judo delivering, really talking to that
:12:09. > :12:12.mission for Team GB here, which is to deliver more medals across more
:12:12. > :12:17.sports and reward that huge amount of investment, which has gone into
:12:17. > :12:20.the team. The other thing which really fascinates me, Huw is the
:12:20. > :12:24.contrasting characters between the people who delivered success today,
:12:24. > :12:29.so you had Peter Wilson, a shooter who himself admits he normally
:12:29. > :12:34.shoots in front of one man and a dog, and then, of course, a bona
:12:34. > :12:38.fide sporting legend like Chris Hoy. Now, tomorrow, the whole Olympics
:12:38. > :12:41.steps up another gear when the athletics gets under way in the
:12:41. > :12:45.stadium behind me - a doubling of the number of people on this
:12:45. > :12:48.Olympic Park. Up until now, it has been around 100,000. It should go
:12:49. > :12:52.up to around 200,000 tomorrow and over the weekend, and you sense
:12:52. > :12:56.with the track and field stars arriving and the smooth
:12:56. > :13:06.organisation of these Games so far, and of course the success for Team
:13:06. > :13:07.
:13:07. > :13:12.GB, that there's some real momentum By the way, we'll have more from
:13:12. > :13:16.the Games later, including today's silver medal for the rowers at Eton
:13:16. > :13:19.Dorney. Let's take a lack at the day's other main news. The mum
:13:20. > :13:23.given the task of bringing peace to Syria, the UN envoy Kofi Annan has
:13:23. > :13:26.resigned -- the man. He said it was impossible for him to do his job
:13:26. > :13:29.and blamed the actions of the Syrian Government, the opposition
:13:30. > :13:32.and what he called disunity among world leaders. There's been more
:13:32. > :13:36.violence in Syria today with fighting in Damascus and in the
:13:36. > :13:40.city of Aleppo, as our Diplomatic Correspondent, James Robbins,
:13:40. > :13:44.reports. Five months ago, Kofi Annan was
:13:44. > :13:48.given a Herculean task - to Makepeace between Syria's President
:13:49. > :13:52.Assad and opposition rebels determined to bring him down. It
:13:52. > :13:58.turned out to be Mission Impossible and today, Mr Annan announced his
:13:58. > :14:02.resignation. He blamed the Syrian leader plairn, but the rebels and
:14:02. > :14:07.the outside world too -- in particular. The bloodshed continues.
:14:07. > :14:13.Most of all, because of Syrian Governments' intransigence and
:14:13. > :14:18.continuing refusal to implement the six-point plan. And also because of
:14:18. > :14:23.the escalating military campaign of the opposition, all of which is
:14:23. > :14:30.compounded by the disunity of the international community.
:14:30. > :14:34.Mr Annan's ceasefire plan was increasingly ignored by both sides.
:14:34. > :14:39.The Government, far from pulling back, was widely blamed for
:14:39. > :14:43.civilian massacres. But the rebels stepped up their
:14:43. > :14:48.attacks too. Still outgunned but now far better
:14:48. > :14:51.organised and equipped. Kofi Annan always knew the odds in Syria were
:14:51. > :14:54.heavily stacked against him. President Assad has never been
:14:55. > :14:59.willing to allow peaceful demonstrations. Instead, the regime
:14:59. > :15:03.relies on force to avoid sharing power with opponents they call
:15:03. > :15:07.terrorists and it draws strength from Russia and Russian armed
:15:07. > :15:10.supplies. The divided opposition and its rebel fighters aren't
:15:10. > :15:16.interested in compromise either, fearing the regime might survive in
:15:16. > :15:22.an altered form. The rebels too have been armed by Qatar and Saudi
:15:22. > :15:25.Arabia in particular. Shelling of cities has
:15:25. > :15:28.intensified... Over recent months, Kofi Annan's been frustrated by
:15:28. > :15:33.deep divisions at the UN, with United States, Britain and France
:15:33. > :15:36.pitted against China and Russia. Things fell apart in New York, he
:15:36. > :15:41.said today. This fundamental split sent very
:15:41. > :15:46.mixed signals to all sides in Syria and helped undermine Kofi Annan's
:15:46. > :15:50.peace efforts. Today in Syria, UN observers are
:15:50. > :15:54.still at work, but observe serving the relentless spread of fighting
:15:54. > :15:59.is about all they can do now. After Kofi Annan steps down at the end of
:15:59. > :16:04.August, it's far from clear what the UN's role will be.
:16:04. > :16:08.But more and more, Syria is falling apart.
:16:08. > :16:15.Today, opposition activists near Damascus buried these victims of
:16:15. > :16:20.what they allege was summary execution by the Government.
:16:20. > :16:27.In Aleppo, the battle for Syria is still raging. Historian Syria is
:16:27. > :16:31.still at war not peace. Finding a potential solution to the
:16:31. > :16:36.Syrian conflict was also on the agenda when David Cameron met
:16:36. > :16:40.President Putin of Russia at Downing Street today. It's Mr
:16:41. > :16:44.Putin's first visit to England in seven years during which time the
:16:44. > :16:50.relations between the countries had been strained. Mr Cameron said it
:16:50. > :16:54.was time to increase the pressure on the Russian Government. Judo was
:16:54. > :16:59.the place to be at the Olympics this afternoon. David Cameron might
:16:59. > :17:03.be the host, but Vladimir Putin is the judo fanatic. Even offering a
:17:03. > :17:07.few tips on technique from a past master. What better way to please
:17:08. > :17:12.the Russian President than a ring- side Olympic seat for a sport than
:17:12. > :17:16.has been his life long passion. Even if there are plenty of
:17:16. > :17:21.difficult political questions to grapple with.
:17:21. > :17:24.Earlier, a red carpet welcome for Mr Putin, both leaders outwardly
:17:25. > :17:30.friendly but well aware it's seven years since he was in the UK and
:17:30. > :17:34.nine long years since he last came to Downing Street.
:17:34. > :17:38.Just getting President Putin to come to these London Olympics and
:17:38. > :17:41.agreeing to come to have talks here in Downing Street is something of
:17:41. > :17:44.an achievement. Achievements between Britain and Russia have
:17:44. > :17:48.been decidedly frosty over the years but there's still plenty to
:17:48. > :17:54.disagree about. Human rights and Syria, crucially.
:17:54. > :17:58.Britain blames Russia for blocking UN attempts to pile pressure on the
:17:58. > :18:02.Syrian government. Mr Putin accuses the West of siding hypocriteically
:18:02. > :18:06.with the rebels, squabbles that led to blistering criticism from Kofi
:18:06. > :18:09.Annan when he resigned today. Before that, inside Downing Street,
:18:09. > :18:11.they were papering over the differences.
:18:11. > :18:17.While of course there have been some differences in the positions
:18:17. > :18:20.that we've taken over the Syrian conflict, we both want to see an
:18:20. > :18:25.end to that conflict and a stable Syria.
:18:25. > :18:28.Mr Putin tellingly even went out of his way to flatter Britain.
:18:29. > :18:35.TRANSLATION: I would like to congratulate the UK and its people
:18:35. > :18:39.for the wonderful unforgettable spectacle of the opening ceremony.
:18:39. > :18:42.Tensions remain. Especially over what some see as Mr Putin's
:18:42. > :18:45.increasingly heavy handed treatment of those who oppose him. These
:18:45. > :18:50.Russian activists in London yesterday were objecting to the
:18:50. > :18:53.visit on human rights grounds. Restrictions on the Internet and
:18:53. > :18:58.oaf NGOs, non-Governmental organisations and a more uncertain
:18:58. > :19:02.business environment. Russia's become a degree more totalitarian
:19:02. > :19:07.than it was in previous times. But that will be a side issue for
:19:07. > :19:12.the Russian President. This was the moment he came for, another judo
:19:12. > :19:20.gold for his country. He was here to embrace the winner. What more
:19:20. > :19:25.could a judo President ask for? Coming up on the programme:
:19:25. > :19:30.COMMENTATOR: The crowd want to lift you up over the line...
:19:30. > :19:36.So close but it's a silver in the rowing for Team GB's light weight
:19:36. > :19:40.fours. The President of the European
:19:40. > :19:43.Central Bank says plans to intervene directly in the eurozone
:19:43. > :19:47.crisis will be drawn up over the coming weeks. Mario Draghi insisted
:19:47. > :19:50.that the euro was here to stay and repeated his promise to do whatever
:19:50. > :19:54.it took to save the currency, including buying Government bonds
:19:54. > :19:59.on the open market to reduce the borrowing costs of countries like
:19:59. > :20:04.Spain and Italy. The lack of any detail disappointed the financial
:20:04. > :20:09.markets, as our Economics Correspondent, stpefny Flanders,
:20:09. > :20:12.explains. -- Stephanie Flanders. We have seen to many make or break
:20:12. > :20:16.summits since the euro crisis began. Many in the markets have stopped
:20:16. > :20:20.looking to Europe's leaders to end the crisis and they are wondering
:20:20. > :20:26.whether this man can do it instead, the President of the European
:20:26. > :20:31.Central Bank. Within our mon date, the ECB is ready to do whatever it
:20:31. > :20:33.takes to preserve the euro -- mandate. Believe me, it will be
:20:33. > :20:37.enough. Investors were thrilled to hear Mr
:20:37. > :20:42.Draghi say that in London last week. It was the most encouraging thing
:20:42. > :20:48.anyone said about the euro for ages. After the ECB eetion policy meeting
:20:48. > :20:51.today, they were hoping to find out more -- ECB's policy meeting.
:20:51. > :20:55.Draghi said the European Central Bank will do whatever it takes. Of
:20:55. > :20:59.course whatever it takes is a definitive solution. At 12.45 we
:20:59. > :21:02.had a statement from the ECB saying interest rates were unchanged. We'd
:21:02. > :21:09.heard the same a few minutes earlier from the Bank of England.
:21:09. > :21:14.Then it was time for the man himself, alas not as pithy as last
:21:15. > :21:18.week. The Governing Council may undertake outright open market
:21:18. > :21:23.operations of a size adequate to reach its objective.
:21:23. > :21:27.To translate, he's willing to help push down the cost of borrowing for
:21:27. > :21:34.countries like Spain but Spain has to ask for support from the
:21:34. > :21:38.European rescue fund first. That's a big but. As I said several times,
:21:38. > :21:42.the ECB cannot replace Governments. When the text of the European
:21:42. > :21:46.Central Bank statement was digested, the euro actually started to come
:21:46. > :21:50.under downward pressure and yields on Government bonds like Italy and
:21:50. > :21:55.Spain started to rise. It appears that the markets are still quite
:21:55. > :21:57.uncertain about what this all means and maybe a little bit of
:21:57. > :22:01.disappointment. In a sense, people in the financial markets heard what
:22:01. > :22:06.they needed to hear from the European Central Bank today. It's
:22:06. > :22:10.willing to take action to bring stability to the financial market
:22:10. > :22:13.and might spend a lot of money doing it. But investors didn't like
:22:13. > :22:17.the lack of detail and they didn't like the insistence that
:22:17. > :22:20.Governments have to get their act together first.
:22:20. > :22:26.The Spanish and Italian Prime Ministers met today and promised to
:22:26. > :22:32.work together to resolve the crisis. But they said talk of applying for
:22:32. > :22:36.a bail out was premature. Maybe this crisis can't be fixed
:22:37. > :22:42.without the European Central Bank, but Mr Draghi isn't going to do it
:22:42. > :22:46.alone. Just a reminder, you can find out
:22:46. > :22:51.much more about the eurozone crisis, the background, lots of information,
:22:51. > :22:57.go to the BBC News website at www.bbc.co.uk/euro, and the links
:22:57. > :23:01.are all there for you. The leader of a gang of men who
:23:01. > :23:06.sexually exploited young girls in Rochdale has been sentenced to 22
:23:06. > :23:14.years in jail for rape. 59-year-old Shabir Ahmed was convicted in June
:23:14. > :23:18.of kexyul by abusing and raping a girl in Rochdale. -- sexual abuse.
:23:18. > :23:21.The population of Scotland has reached a record number according
:23:21. > :23:26.to the latest official figures. There are more than 5.25 million
:23:26. > :23:32.people living in Scotland, 14,000 more than the previous peak which
:23:32. > :23:38.was in 1974. A fall in the death rate and net migration are that
:23:38. > :23:42.tout be the main factors. -- thought to be the main factors.
:23:42. > :23:49.More from the Olympics and Team GB rowers picked up a medal today,
:23:49. > :23:55.narrowly missing out on a gold. The team were edged out by South Africa.
:23:56. > :23:59.Andy Swiss reports on another dramatic day at Eton Dorney. Bright,
:23:59. > :24:04.breezy and brimming with optimism. After yesterday's flying start, all
:24:04. > :24:10.British eyes turned to the men's light weight four, fastest in
:24:10. > :24:15.qualifying, but this was the one that mattered. They began steadly,
:24:15. > :24:19.Rob Williams, Chris Bartley and the Chambers brother, Richard and Pete,,
:24:19. > :24:22.a sibling success story perhaps, with the winds against them they
:24:22. > :24:26.soon trailed. These lightweights have big hearts.
:24:26. > :24:28.Furthest from the camera, they clawed their way back to set up a
:24:28. > :24:33.grandstand finish. COMMENTATOR: Here come the British.
:24:33. > :24:36.The crowd want to lift you up over the line. They're not going to do
:24:36. > :24:41.it. South Africa are Olympic champions. Great Britain get the
:24:41. > :24:46.silver... They missed gold by inches. It was
:24:46. > :24:50.simply agonising. That was brutal. Really, really brutal. But we were
:24:51. > :24:55.just fighting and fighting through the whole lot just to get ourselves
:24:55. > :24:59.back in contention and we did a cracking job just not great enough
:24:59. > :25:03.for the gold. For the Chambers brothers from
:25:03. > :25:07.Coleraine in Northern Ireland, the exhaustion and emotion was plain to
:25:07. > :25:17.see. Silver medallists representing
:25:17. > :25:45.
:25:45. > :25:48.Great Britain.... So A Third Medal For Britain's Rowers Here At Eton
:25:48. > :25:50.Dorran Yirbgs Not Quite The Colour They Hoped For, But What A Spirit
:25:50. > :25:52.And Courageous Performance -- Eton Dorney. One Watched By Their
:25:52. > :25:54.Families, Including Nine-month-old Joshua Chambers, Not A Bad Day's
:25:54. > :25:57.Work For Dad. I was thinking of making him a little Olympic scrap
:25:58. > :26:00.book to show he was here, so it's bill grant. Glad we could all be
:26:00. > :26:02.here. Two - Brilliant. Two Silver Medals Is Just Ridiculous, Amazing.
:26:02. > :26:04.I'm Delighted. No Gold For The Rowers, But What A Silver Lining.
:26:04. > :26:07.The American swimmer Michael Phelps has tonight achieved an astounding
:26:07. > :26:09.new high claiming his 16th Olympic gold. The 20th Olympic medal of his
:26:09. > :26:12.career, with a thrilling victory in the 200 metres individual medley.
:26:12. > :26:15.More on that and the other day's achievements with Dan Roan. It was
:26:15. > :26:17.the one the world was watching, a classic dual in the pool, over 200
:26:17. > :26:19.metres between two of the greatest swimmers seen. The last installment
:26:19. > :26:23.in the rivally between the legendary soon to retire makele
:26:23. > :26:29.Phelps, the most decorated Olympician in history and his
:26:29. > :26:39.compatriot, William Lochte. His opponent won gold when they raced
:26:39. > :26:42.
:26:42. > :26:47.in the 400 metre medley. Now it was time for round two. Lochte managed
:26:47. > :26:55.only bronze earlier on and he was soon behind. After a poor Olympics
:26:55. > :27:00.by his standard, it was clear that talk of Phelps's demise had been
:27:00. > :27:04.overestimated. Phelps maintained his lead, sealing his first gold of
:27:04. > :27:11.the Olympics and proving a point. COMMENTATOR: It's gold to Phelps.
:27:11. > :27:17.Finally he wins gold. It was cool. I wanted to try to really just
:27:17. > :27:23.force it as much as I could and I'm pretty pleased. The 16th gold and
:27:23. > :27:31.20th Olympic medal of a unique sporting career. Phelps becoming
:27:31. > :27:36.the same person to win the same -- the first person to win the same
:27:36. > :27:46.medal at three successive Olympics Games. The crowd want to see some
:27:46. > :27:46.
:27:46. > :27:51.more home success. Britain's Fran Halsall had been
:27:51. > :27:59.determined to improve. The race was tight and she started well but the
:27:59. > :28:03.opposition proved too strong, the Netherlands opponent taking gold.
:28:03. > :28:07.There was better news for Team GB earlier in the day when Rebecca
:28:07. > :28:11.Adlington began the defence of her 800 metre crown by qualifying
:28:11. > :28:15.quickest for tomorrow's final. Someone who's already got a third
:28:15. > :28:19.Olympic gold is sailor Ben Ainslie and he reignited his quest for a
:28:19. > :28:25.fourth in Weymouth bay hitting back with a first and third in the fin
:28:25. > :28:28.class races to narrow the gap with surprise leader cyst Jensen to two
:28:29. > :28:34.points. Meanwhile at Wimbledon, Andy