BBC One: Day 2: 09.00-11.30 Olympics

# Stop making eyes at me... # I bet you look good on the dance

# I bet you look good on the dance floor...

# I bet you look good on the dance floor... # Like a robot from 1984!

The Olympics are under way and it was an opening day to savour. Today

there are 14 gold medals up for grabs. After early disappointment

for Team GB eaters over to the Beijing Golden girls today to get

things going. And plenty in the case for the defence.

Rebecca Adlington surprised the field for years ago. Shirt -- can

she retained her 400m freestyle title today? Nicole Cooke was

another Beijing winner but will Lizzie Armitstead grab the

limelight in London? Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter cannot

win a medal today but there hoping to follow up with another good day

for British rowing. And Wimbledon finalist this month, it could be a

golden August for Andy Mariek ft? And here's the plan for the early

part the day. Earls Court first of all for the volleyball. Then over

to Lord's for the archery with the British women hoping to do better

than the men yesterday when they take on Russia. And then we're at

the equestrian event to see Zara Phillips in the dressage. And you

shall deal of rowing heats later on. If you what action straight away,

BBC Three has the Badminton at Wembley. New Zealand take on

Australia in the women's hockey. And there are many options on the

BBC sport website with shooting, table tennis and beach volleyball

all under way. Or you could stay with us here on BBC One as we bring

you all the best bits from the second day of London 2012. Ian

Thorpe is back on the sofa with us once again. Let us start with that

eventful night in the pool. It has been a shocking day in swimming.

There were unexpected results and that followed through to the finals.

For a lot of people it was a devastating result for Michael

Phelps. What happened? I think he is going to be better in the

shorter events. He is prioritising the 200m butterfly. And maximising

his opportunities here. Ryan Lochte had a great night. But Michael

Phelps, he had a poor race, he has admitted that. I think everyone was

surprised that he was not in a winning position. They expected to

see him with the silver medal. Lochte looking on fantastic form.

Fantastic. There was a moment that must have had personal significance

for you, seeing you're Olympic record broken? I'm happy. When you

have a record of some kind you are the custodian of it until someone

else does it. I was excited last night and felt someone might

actually break that record in the freestyle. It was so close.

Congratulations to China for the first ever men's gold medal. Well

overall it was a disappointing start for Team GB's swimmers in the

pool. Today the focus will be Rebecca Adlington, the start of

British swimming after Beijing. She is defending both Olympic titles at

these Games. And the weight of I have coached over 30 years and

have never coached anyone with the drive that Rebecca has got. She has

an innate ability to push yourself to the limit. It is in her DNA and

what makes her such an awesome competitor. She is one of the most

grounded people I have ever met. She just takes it in her stride.

And she's always happy. She has done an incredible job. Not only

her results in Beijing but being able to follow them up with strong

consistency. Rebecca Adlington, you are

absolutely brilliant! So going into Beijing you could

sneak under the radar but certainly not this time. Definitely not. But

everything has been so enjoyable. In Beijing it all happened so fast,

it was overwhelming. I forgot to have enjoyed it, take it all in.

Whereas this time I have been doing that and it has been good. After

Beijing I wanted to take some time off. I wanted to enjoy everything,

it was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I would never have

that experience again. I'm glad I did that, I have no regret at all.

I was pleased with my 400 in two dozen and nine but not so much the

800. I have definitely learnt more from my not so good swims than the

good ones. And I definitely would not change that. Are you excited at

that moment when they announce your name and 17,000 people scream?

never really focus much and the crowd, I'm so busy thinking what I

have to do, concentrating, checking everything. You're doing so many

little things. You do not fully appreciate the crowd until the

finish. Then you look around and think, that was incredible. Anyone

can do absolutely anything in an Olympic year. No one expected me to

do so well in Beijing and it will be the same this time, there will

be people coming out of know where you have never heard of. There will

be surprises, everything, that is the point of a Olympics. Hopefully

we can all pull something out of the bag and get some personal bests.

Where such a good team, so strong. A personal best for you would mean

a new world record, is that the target? I would love to get a

personal best, of course. And everyone always says that to me. I

would love to be able to go faster, try to get a little bit quicker.

But I would definitely take a personal best!

Rebecca Adlington who will be in the pool this morning. It is so

different for her going into these games. A yes she was the underdog

going into Beijing and then produce these fantastic results and became

the darling for the British public. It has been a long time since we

had a swimmers such as this. It will be very different for her at

these games and also the pressure of a home a limpets and being the

defending champion. Your experience is that you're the darling of

Sydney and then went on to Athens for years later. It was a little

bit different. There was always a heightened expectation around my

performance. For me to produce a result. You do feel it. Although

you try to pretend you do not, it is there. You can use it but

sometimes it does feel like pressure. And for Rebecca she will

have all of these things to contend with. I think she will swim well

and I think that will make her performance even better. Will she

want to hear the crowd, do you think? Many of them are wearing

headphones will stock it is the home games and some of that

swimmers have not experienced this kind of a crowd before. And knowing

they will be cheering for the GB team, some of them have decided to

block it out. Others have said, I want to hear the roar of the crowd

and use that to my own advantage. Well Rebecca Adlington herself will

be taking place in the swimming heats within the hour.

It is always interesting being here early. Look how many swimmers are

out there. They have to swim in clockwise rotation. There is a lot

of activity. Mark, this is your environment. We could talk about

Rebecca Adlington of four hours. But she is not listening to this,

she is in their just getting on for it. She may come in for a first

warm-up. Depending on what your distance is, most swimmers will go

in for about an hour before they start. Everyone has their own

ritual. A lot of people like to swim in the competition full -- the

competition full to get the feel of it. I love being here. Going back

to Rebecca, it seems that in Beijing she was 19 years old and

very fresh and did not expect anything. For A23 year-old she is

still now quite naive. She does not seem to be burdened too much.

Looking at the race again, it is the most extraordinary thing. She

was fifth-place with one length to go. She did come back and no one

expected this. She just came and came. No one expected that. It was

just an amazing moment. Joe Jackson is also taking part and she has had

terrible problems with asthma. It is amazing that she has come back

from that. Rebecca's problems have not been physical but she did have

a kind of mental dip, the pressure of being the Olympic champion.

There is expedition from the public and you go from being the Hunter to

the hunted. And everyone is now chasing her so it is a different

mindset. Then you're dealing with the public pressure. And also

people saying stupid things about you, and just get on with it and

say this is what I do, I will go out and do my best. And good luck

to her. Gemma Spofforth was the best in the world in 2009. She has

been through a lot of things at home that you would not wish upon

anyone. Her mother died, she kept it secret and decided she did not

want to talk about it. After the Olympics her father, his new

partner then died. And his partner's daughter. That was three

deaths in the space of five years. It has been a tough ride for her.

It is so nice to see you smiling. You have had such a tough couple of

years. Definitely. The last few years, I have been all over the

place. But since the trials I have been the happiest I have been in my

whole career. I've just learnt to take each moment and enjoyed it.

Just in join my training and the paint I'm getting from it and the

fun. It has changed everything about my training and my world and

everything. I'm just excited about what is to come because I'm in the

best place I have been for a long time. Are you now racing for

yourself? I am. It is amazing how quickly that turn around took place.

One of the things I struggled with for a long time is how selfish an

athlete can be and how much we take from so many people. Family and

friends sacrifice so much, coaches give us so much all the time. It

took me a long time to get around that. What I have learnt is that I

am being selfish but I'm also giving back in a lot of ways. I

have to balance that. And using swimming to be able to give back to

certain people. It took me a long I know that whatever I do in the

pool is 100%. There is nothing more that I can give. So Gemma Spofforth

is back? Yes, she is back and enjoying swimming again and the

world is my oyster and anything can happen and die have my own personal

golds. Nobody comes to the Olympics to come second, third or 4th, so my

golds are high, but if that does not happen I know that I have put

might all into that race. She is back, which is very good news. She

trains in Florida with a Ryan Lochte? Yes they have a grit their

which is the best in the world. She went through that Sujit lull after

becoming world champion and she was on top of the world. Dealing with

all those demons and things that happen in your life, I have never

had those losses, but she is such a lovely person. I saw her walking

and she had a smile on her face and a glint back in her eyes. She will

be in the swimming pool at about 10:20am. Lots of action with

British swimmers. Missy Franklin and Ryan Lochte are back in the

pool as well. Gemma Spofforth will be competing

against Missy Franklin. She has become a teenage sensation over the

course of the last year. As Michael Phelps says, she is one of the best

female swimmers he has ever seen. And she is and it is quite

extraordinary. This happens from time to time when you see a very

young, talented swimmer who bursts onto the scene. We saw it last

night with the Chinese women just at 16 winning an Olympic gold and

breaking a world record. But a Missy Franklin will have an

incredible Olympic Games. There are lots of young swimmers in the squad.

How world for you when you became world champion? I was 15. The

youngest ever male world champion. There are pluses and minuses about

being young. You have this childhood naivety about what you

are doing and you do not realise the significance of it. But you are

quite immature. You think you are an adult, every teenager does. It

is one of those things that you feel like you can conquer the world

and it is a bigger advantage to being young. But the impact it can

have in later years is you can be a one-hit wonder and there have been

a number of cases where it has been a one off. I guess it is about

managing those experiences for those around those young swimmers.

There is lots to watch out for up in the swimming heats, but it is

busy as well in the rowing and it is all happening at Eton Dorney.

John Inverdale is there again. Great start for Britain again.

Amongst them Alan Campbell he was in imperious form in the single

sculls, how did you feel? I am very happy. My season form was not quite

there, but we have turned a corner and we are on top of it. I was very

happy with yesterday and I felt good. I was just thinking about

myself, about what I was doing. Not really worrying about the rest.

talk about it being internalised, and there was a piece a minute ago

with Gemma Spofforth who has said only personal tragedy has made her

realise how selfish you have to be as a sports person to achieve what

you want. Are you very conscious of that? People close to get

marginalised? Yes, getting married this year, my first year of

marriage and it is the first year I have been homesick. On training

camps... She is loving hearing this. I have had a line of pillows to

have that presence. It is very odd for her because she is not an

athlete. She is not in to sport, she is into Alan the person, not

Alan the rower. It has been very hard for her with me disappearing

off on the training camps and she has done very well. But the support

team behind have to take a huge amount of credit and they allow me

to get on and do what I want to do and they support me. Being a role

and an Olympic athlete is one of the most selfish vocations you

could have because it is all about how good you can be. It is not so

much that there are great gains for other people. But on the flipside I

hope we can make good role models. Steve is a fantastic role model and

he inspired me to take up sport in the first place. What did you make

of Alyn yesterday? I thought it was very good and I thought the

interview you did before on Portugal was an insight in some

ways of the pressure that is on the athlete coming up to the final

trials and then the attitude of going into the season and not doing

the double and sticking to the single. Then finding you are

isolated and fighting against the selection, even though everyone had

agreed with it and you were trying to justify that and the results

were not happening as consistently as they had over the past few years.

That is a good insight of where he is and where he is now. It is

always difficult in the first race because the entry is so big. Six

heats and there is one good one in each one and there is nobody to

race. It is a case a bracing yourself and putting down a marker.

As a veteran campaigner and you have been to so many regattas, it

must be in the hundreds, how does this whole environment and

atmosphere compare with anything you have had before? It does not

compare to Eton Dorney any time I have been here before. If anything,

it reminds me more of Beijing and the set-up there. It is fantastic.

When I was watching the racing before my own race, I watched the

girls pair, and I heard the crowds and I thought that you had been

dubbing in-crowd denies. Don't tell anybody that! I could not imagine

where you had been recording it. As I came down it was absolutely

insane. The noise is not something I have experienced before. I had

been at Henley with 100,000 people on the banks and it did not sound

anything like that. It was absolutely phenomenal. Coming into

the last 300 where you have got the grandstand, it reminded me of the

Crucible in the snooker with two match is happening on either side

and one side is cheering as the other side is lining up the pot. It

was like the two size were competing against each other to get

the cheering. What you hear on the television is what we are hearing

out there, definitely. Brilliant, that is the best you have summed it

up. Best of luck. I'm sure we will be talking to you a few more times.

As far as today is concerned, one of our main focus of attention is

on a Zac Purchase and our country. Sport is great when it is going

well and less good when it is not going well and they had experienced

the good and the bad. Beijing was am really exciting year. We had 13

races and won 13 races. It is nice to have it in the back of your mind,

but you cannot rely on it. You have to be on the starting line and not

rely on the past. These men are Britain's best ever lightweight

rowers. In 2008, Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter went to Beijing and did

something that no-one had ever done before. We have now gone into the

record books. Great Britain by the Olympic champions and it sounds

fantastic. A partnership that was only a year in the making, Zac

Purchase's style and punter's attention to detail made them a

formidable combination. We had the right combination, the right team.

We made history by winning gold and we knew we had a long way to go. We

knew we could progress and move on. Hunter had given so much for his

golden moment in China he headed to the beaches of California for some

time out, but the lure of London enticed him back into the boat and

they won the World Championships in 2010. Despite Zac Purchase missing

much of 2011, with a buyer is, they managed to repeat that feat. It was

about making sure that the progression was centred about

winning the World Championships, rather than on a day-to-day basis.

It was good to prove to ourselves that we could pull ourselves out of

a whole, but hopefully we will never get into a hole again.

Olympic year began so brightly with victory in the Belgrade World Cup,

but the stark reality of the Lucerne Regatta where they finish

amongst the also-rans, made it clear what they had to do. We had

some good form, but also some disappointing results. We came 6th,

but they were very different races in very different regattas. We were

critical and we played the big here to see what happened and we picked

out a lot of faults. Some we probably would not have looked at

in as much detail if we had not got beaten. They had dealt with injury,

illness and high-profile defeats, but they are natural winners. All

that has gone before or will be forgotten if the heroics of Beijing

can be repeated. When you sit on that start-line history is

forgotten. It is what you do in that race. The only reason we are

going to London is to cross that finish line first and hear the

national anthem and hear the crowd go absolutely crazy. I just cannot

wait. They do not have long to wait. 11:20am is their first race. Offer

as reasons for optimism given the fact their last two performances in

the World Cup were disappointing. To come back to win a medal is

going to be tough and to win a gold medal is ridiculous, but they can

do this. They are the type of characters who can get themselves

out of a whole. They are able to turn it around. If they win gold,

that would not surprise me. Anybody else in the world championships

coming 6th, there is no way. That is why I'm interested in this

morning because it will tell us if they add back on form or not.

back and join us a bit later on. If you want to watch the rowing,

you can press the red button on goat to the BBC sport website.

Yesterday we had a look at the beach volleyball, but now it is

time to look at the more The court is 18 metres long and

nine metres wide. There is a three- metre attacking zone either side of

the net. This separates the back and front of the court. The Net is

2.43 metres high for the men and 2.24 metres for the women. The ball

weighs between 260 and 280 grams. It can travel at speeds of up to

100 miles an hour. Each match is the best of five sets. The first

four sets are played to 25 points with the final set being played to

15 points. Each team has six players on the court with a further

six substitutes. Every point begins with a service and the main aim is

to stop the ball hitting the floor on your side of the court. If the

opposing team hit the ball out or fail to return it properly, they

lose the point. Teams can touch the ball no more than three times and

no single player is allowed to touch the ball twice in succession

and lest the first touch is a block. There will be 12 teams in both the

men's and women's events. Divided into two pools of six they play a

round-robin format with the four best teams qualifying for the

knockout phase all the way through to the final wears a gold medal

If you would like to get involved in the Olympic sports, go to the

website for more information. And the action has got under way.

The captain of the British team thinks they have a realistic chance

of getting into the last four. Today they are digging on Bulgaria.

Today they are digging on Bulgaria. -- taking on.

Join us with Bulgaria at just having taken the first point. Great

Britain making their debut in these games. The women's saying yesterday

that as they walked on in front of a huge crowd, the feeling was

indescribable. Can they mustered 25 points to take the first set?

A first 0.4 Great Britain! -- point for Great Britain. That is a

significant moment for them. Great Britain now serve. Point two.

The trademark huddle. The GB coach, a calm presence on the sidelines.

Mark McGivern normally plays volleyball in France. Now in front

of his home crowd. That is the power of the Bulgarians, ranked

nine in the world. GB feel this match is winnable. Great Britain

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in the afternoon is fine for him! He does not like the early start.

Good block by the Bulgarians. Bulgaria take the point and the

lead. The block by the British team going out of court.

Samba, as he is known, here he comes! He applied to join the team

as soon as he heard London were hosting the games. An attacker

coming from deep, a pike as it is called. Bulgaria have the lead.

Miscommunication there between the British front three.

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attacking shot but Bulgaria blocked for! But it was not good enough. I

think that was an extra touch so great Britain have lost the. With

the first technical time out. -- the point. Each coach has the

chance to call his players off twice in Passat. So it is a solid

start. But if they are to advance they need to see that they stayed

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what Great Britain aspire to. The block was there but he was not

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prevented from finishing. And a for the British team.

Bulgaria take the point and have the serve. That was just in. It

dipped at the final moment. We have seen this throughout this

tournament. The ball can sometimes specialist position. And Great

right arm over. Even the top blockers, few could have stopped

impressive in a warm up game against Germany.

And Britain have the point. The block worked well. Speed and energy

three points in it now. Time-out. Not sure who has called that. It

must be the Bulgarians. So far this has been a more

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promising patch of the game for deft touches. The tactics of

working and opening. Nathan French to serve. Nikolov again. Six foot

nine. Samba man comes to Great Britain's

aid. Bulgaria have the experience but Great Britain have the belief

and the spirit. And they are going points scorer with three so far for

Bulgaria. And on the back of that Britain team unable to act quickly

momentum, so important in inside. It has been a tense first

set against Bulgaria, but a promising experience overall

because this is an Olympic debut for Britain's volleyball team. They

are taking a technical time-out. If you want to stay with it, press

your red button. Also you can find judo. That competition is under way

with Sophie Cox and Colin Oates in action. There are even more options

on the 24 streams on the BBC website. Table tennis, beach

volleyball, badminton, take your pick. Now it is time for the

It was a disappointing day yesterday for the men's team and we

can head over to Lord's to see if the women can do any better. It is

in north London, St John's Wood at Lord's Cricket Ground which has

been transformed. Lords as you have never seen it before. What is it

like to see this world famous Stenuit such a different event?

The home of cricket is most definitely a great summer rental.

They have got sued, temporary stands to house 5000 spectators and

it has created an amazing amphitheatre style. It has been

brilliant over the past couple of days. It was disappointing for the

men yesterday. Eight that at the first hurdle and were beaten by

Ukraine. They were out in the first round. We are going to see if Great

Britain's women can do any better. They did not perform at their best

on Friday, but they are up against Russia today, that seemed to whom

they have lost twice. However, Russia can be inconsistent. The

British girls say they think they are in with an outside chance of a

medal. Not an easy day for the team as a whole after the men yesterday.

No, so I think the GB women are hoping to turn it around. We are

dominant in this sport, being knocked out at the semi-final stage,

the men, by the USA. Then the USA were beaten by the Italians for

gold. India have been knocked out in this event, so there has been

huge drama. They are just about ready to go. Let's hand over to Liz

Mynott and Eddie Butler. Russian team have been introduced

to a very loud crowd. Great Britain against Russia, the third match of

this morning. We have seen high quality, we have also seen

disintegration here at Lord's. Poor old Ukraine rather collapsed on the

team outing in front of the pavilion. Great Britain ceded only

11th out of 12 after the ranking and Russia to go first. Liz Mynott

is alongside me. The Russians are coming into this and they start off

with a 10. They are world-ranked No. 7 at the moment. None of the

Archers in the Russian team have ever been to an Olympic Games. They

have never experienced the enormity at Lord's before. It is being

recorded as an eight, but a little star means it will be checked. If

it touches the line, it will go up to nine. And eight with the last

with 10. Naomi has been shooting incredibly well this year. She got

a silver at the European Championships. She can pull 810 out

of the bag when she needs to. Oliver with a nine. Alison

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Williamson. Her 6th Olympics. It is She has been shooting incredibly

Oliver. Nine. That is good. They get a bit blase about nine, but

nine is good. Deep breath, Alison Williamson. Seven, first Arrow,

nine, second. Alison was world ranked number one in 2005. She has

been inspiring the British archers for us long as I can remember. I

remember her giving me my first award at a junior national

championships and I remember not wanting to wash my hands afterwards

because I had met the famous Alison Williamson. She was a lovely

inspiration. Britain will have a lead of six arrows. Down at the

target end they are checking how big that lead will be. If the Arab

touches a line, the score is still in the Goldstone.

Confirmation of the scores. Russia 50, Great Britain 54, but we are

only a quarter of the way through. We have got a long way to go. That

is one of the long things in archery, you have to keep focusing

on the arrow that you are shooting right now. You have to forget about

whether you are winning or whether you are using. That is her worst

score. She has gone 10, 10, 9. She has wobbled a bit. 9, 7, 8. This is

the anchor, the start of the trio. girls in the stadium. They

struggled a bit in the ranking range. This is so different, this

is rapid fire. 24 arrows against the clock and the women are

responding. Amy Oliver with a nine. Four consecutive nines. I know that

all three girls have been shooting incredibly hard and together at the

National Sports Centre for several years. Five nines on the trot. A

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halfway mark. She drifts want out medal in the team event for the

ladies. There is Lloyd Brown. He is from the USA. He has been working

with the girls and the boys in the British team for the last four

years. It is a 10. Their lead is cut, but Britain still go into the

second half with a two-point advantage. The British team are

incredibly experienced. Alison Williamson, MBE, on her 6th

Olympics. Naomi is on her third. This is Amy Oliver's first Olympics,

although she has medals over the past few years. The last time they

shot together with some significance was in the

Commonwealth Games. There is a clogged issue. The clock starts and

they have two minutes to shoot their six arrows. It can be a

factor. We saw Ukraine rushed into their last arrow when it's nearly

missed. It went for a 3 in the white rings. No place to go, it is

at very lonely spot. We are really lucky with the weather because the

sun is behind the clouds and it is not affecting the shooting. Before

this match it was driving into the eyes of the Archers. The wind is

not too bad, nothing is affecting the Arrows this morning. When the

wind picks up and the rain comes this afternoon, that will be quite

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have changed their order a bit. As you can in the second half. A nine

execution is always strong. It is a pleasure to see. Alison Williamson

with a 10. That was fantastic, the balance of

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the shot. fire. It is lovely watching the

girls, they are so settled and calm shot. It is a nine. If Russia get

the extra point on checking, they will be in the lead. Nice to see

Lloyd Brown getting in there with the girls. It is important that Amy

gets back to her normal routine. Her heart must be pounding. We know

she can shoot the ten. We are all square. Three ends gone, one to go.

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The last six arrows will settle it. two points dropped in that batch of

three arrows. Absorb the support, Naomi, and use it. On the line,

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score. They will have to have very high scores to have any chance. And

Lovely finish. Still a long way behind the Russian score. They

finished very powerfully. And dropped very few points. And

Britain suffered with an Amy Oliver six.

The Rusland dad - the Russians shot above there average for this year.

It was a pleasure to see. The British girls, there will take the

lines and tens they shot at the beginning of the match into the

individual event. They will appear in the individual

competition. Russia milking the applause at the home of cricket.

They are through to the quarter So the British women are just

knocked out of the Olympic competition. And to bring the up-

to-date with the volleyball, the men's volleyball team and Great

Britain have lost the first set. They're playing Bulgaria at Earls

Court. Well we will shortly see Gemma Spofforth and Miss C Franklin

in action. In the meantime a special moment is approaching for

Zara Phillips as she competes at the Olympics for the very first

time. Wriggle over to the dressage. After missing out in Athens and

Beijing what better place for Zara Phillips to make her Olympic debut

than on a world heritage site overlooked by the Queen's House and

in front of a home crowd? She is one of five riders on the British

eventing team. The sport is a bit like a Triathlon. First they have

the dressage where they perform as that test and they are judged

according to balance and obedience. Then comes the cross country which

is about speed and endurance as they take on a course of fixed

obstacles. And then the course of flimsy coloured poles in the show

jumping. Britain have been pretty successful over the years but have

not won a team Olympic gold medal in 40 years. Can they do it here?

They are currently lying third behind Germany and Australia. But

they have only had two riders going so far. Today after Zara Phillips

we have Tina Cook and William Fox- Pitt. All three more than capable

of achieving big scores. And if things go their way they could have

not beat him the lead, be close enough to give the leaders as

sleepless night. We're a few moments away now from

Zara Phillips making her Olympic debut. Both her parents are

Olympians so she is following a proud family tradition. We can join

our commentary team over at Greenwich Park.

The Brazilians with just four riders, most teams have got five.

riders, most teams have got five. Germany. And getting close to Zara

Phillips now who is in the arena dressage. And some who are not

quite so good and survey has been one of those, unfortunately. --

Sergei. He does not look too happy in the dressage here at Greenwich

European champion on her horse Toy Town. And the Princess Royal is

there to watch along with Prince Philip. Her brother Peter is also

here with his wife. This young lady, 31 years old, has had a tremendous

record of rising to the occasion. She won both the world title and

her first ever right for Britain in the European Championships when she

won the European title. She has taken a while to find a horse as

good as Toy Town but this could be it. And 11 year-old who really

burst onto the scene last year finishing 10th. And then in the

final trial really put in a great performance which I think nailed

her position in this squad. She missed out on a couple of games.

But now is her chance to make her Imperial Cavalier. The bell is 45

seconds before you go into the ring and then you can get penalised. She

is beautifully positioned to get in quite comfortably and not put

herself under tension. Zara Phillips in her first Olympic

appearance, riding the 11 year-old High Kingdom. High Kingdom's

certainly proved his value and worth in getting here to London. He

has just improved and matured in strength over the last couple of

years. A pretty good at medium trot. An excellent start. There is no-one

cooler under pressure than Zara Phillips, a real cool cookie. I

went to a press conference the other day and she not only handles

herself well on the horse, but she handles herself well under pressure

by the media and anyone else around. Both mother and father have ridden

for Great Britain. The Princess Royal in Montreal in 1976. And

Captain Mark Phillips, several Olympics including the gold medal

team in Munich. We had a brief moment of panic in the veterinary

inspection when they asked hiking them to trot for a second time. But

he was showing he was full of life and turning Zara Phillips around. -

- if they ask pie Kingdom to go again. She goes into an extended

walk again. A horse of this quality shows the extended walk beautifully.

This is where you see how we lacked he is. Just anticipating a little

bit of a canter. He lost the rhythm a fraction. Sevens for the extended

walk. Four and five for that disobedience. But incredibly

straight in the canto line. It is attention to details of where you

throw away marks. She is being very accurate, but missed the change.

You have to be very quick when that happens and put it behind you and

not panic about the rest of the test. Two, 3 and 3. Ala be extended

canter and a very well-balanced back. Nine for the extended canter.

Good boy, that is more like it. is all about par many of those

signals between horse and rider, particularly in this very tense

atmosphere. Absolutely on the centre line, lovely balance, no

resistance, one more, good boy. Eights coming back. What a good

performance because she did not panic when she missed that first

change and so neither did the horse. Her Royal Highness will know

exactly what she is thinking. There is Mike Tindall. He will be a proud

man. The marks are going back towards that 70% again. The

grandstand is very nearly full, the biggest crowd we have seen here so

far. We have still got to get the collective marks, the marks that

look the whole test. We are with just under the 70%. Still looking

pretty serious. 46.10. We will wait to get that confirmed. A lovely

extended trot. That is good news for Britain. We are right there.

One very happy jockey. That is definitely very good news for the

This is her Olympic debut, she was disappointed in missing out in

Beijing and Athens because of injuries to her previous horse.

This time it is High Kingdom. She has made a very good start and that

is goodbye the British squad. Watching her in the dressage was

her grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh and her mother the

Princess Royal who knows exactly what it is like to compete in the

same event at the Olympics. She did that herself. Captain Mark Phillips

won a gold medal. You can follow all the equestrian

action later on this afternoon on the website. Let's go to the

Aquatics Centre because we are going to get our first taste of the

swimming action. It is happening behind me. I wonder if you have had

one eye on the dressage. Both eyes. I thought Zara Phillips did really

well because High Kingdom is the baby of the team. To recover from

not a great first canter section she did very well. We have got Tina

Cook to come on Miners Frolic. He has the capability of getting a

great score. William Fox-Pitt should get a great score of. I

would expect going into the cross country phase we could be in a very

strong position with the scores of William Fox-Pitt, Mary King and

Tina Cook. A team of five and took the best three scores count. In the

swimming it is a team spirit and we want the British team to do well

and when their medal, but it is also a sport for individuals. Every

individual on the British team, which has definitely strengthened,

every individual has a Astoria. We are going to see George Ed Davey is

competing. She has always been there or thereabouts. At the trials

at Lizzie Simmonds was expected to make it with Gemma Spofforth and

George Davis was third. All of a sudden she wins the trials. Some

events we have such depth and others we do not. When you need to

step up, she did that and she made the team. There are an awful lot of

people and they are cheering for the British swimmers. They are

qualifying for semi-finals at this Davis in lane six in the red cap.

She has got a very high, still head. Emily see Burma was on the Israeli

in relay that one by fantastic gold medal in the relay. She is leading

Emily Seebohm a good length ahead of the rest of the field. Georgia

Davis is in a good place. She gets a good second. I am pretty sure

that will get her through to the semi-final. A new Olympic record

from Emily Seebohm. We all liked talking about gliding in. It is not

easy to do. A big signal to the rest of the field. That is really

frightening in the first of the seeded heats. 16 very fast swimmers

Not far off the world record which is held by Gemma Spofforth. Last

air Emily see Bernhard swine flu! It is one of those things, you have

to make it through to the top 16, but she does not know how she is

swimming. She just missed the world record. It shows you on the backs

of all these ups and downs, people surprise themselves. A big swear

and for Jorja Davies. -- a big swim Spofforth is going well in lane

seven. Wilkinson, the Canadian, doing very well indeed. She is

leading the field and stretching away. This is goodbye Gemma

Spofforth. That is a great place for her to be, she is nearest to

you. She is looking very good indeed. The rest of the field are

starting to come back. Gemma She was off the pace at 50, but

Not bad, but more is needed. does go out slow and fight back

against people. She is the world champion and the record holder. You

like to think she has got more in the bag. I would have liked to have

seen a bit more. But she looked so happy, she is back to herself, but

it is going to be tight going through to the finals. I hope she

enjoyed the atmosphere as well. The final heat featured Missy Franklin,

the new American swimming sensation. She is only 17 and has the chance

We take a check on those who have qualified for the finals. Georgia

Davies, a really good swim for her. Gemma Hope sabbath his 12th fastest

and we will see her again in action tonight.

tonight. And here is Robbie Renwick. We do

have a British swimmer, Robbie Renwick and Johan Lloyd. They also

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 51 seconds

have the world record holder in Robbie Rennick in second place, the

crowd getting behind him. He has rarely picked it up for

Great Britain. And Johan Lloyd at the top there, this is good to see.

It could beat Ronnie -- Robbie Renwick to turn first. The crowd

going absolutely nuts. The big boys in the centre really starting to

at the top. He looks like he may get a second. I am sure that we'll

get him through to the semi-final. Just outside his best, but great

experience. Look at him with his head down, digging deeper. The

crowd were just going ballistic, it is fantastic. Izotov wins heat four.

It is pretty exciting! The second of the three seeded

champion. And he really destroyed Michael Phelps, a massive surprise

last night. Two gold medallists already in the

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 51 seconds

freestyle. Sun Yang of China in a little bit slower. He is starting

to pick it up now. Dreesens of Holland taking the lead. It is all

over the place. Sun Yang starting to make his move with about 70

Ryan Lochte. And Sun Yang has will speed, he is such a fighter and

once he gets going it is kind of hard to see anyone stop him.

Amazing. Sun Yang wins it. Ryan Lochte second. It looked have

reasonably comfortable. Sun Yang has got the stroke, Ryan

1500. So that is the results of heat five. Sun Yang winning it, and

heat five. Sun Yang winning it, and little bit of a surprise.

Sun Yang of China up looking very good indeed in that heat. It looks

like one of the rivalries of these Olympics. It will be. And a great

example, similar to what we have seen what Rebecca Adlington against

Pellegrini. This is happening with Sun Yang and Ryan Lochte. Sun Yang

is more experienced in the distance events and Ryan Lochte experienced

at the slightly shorter events. There's also the French swimwear.

Ryan Phelps was not in his race. De - Michael Phelps. The reason is he

wants to be part of the United States relay team. He wanted to

restrict his programme to concentrate on some key events.

We will be back with the swimming later on. We gold live now to Eton

Dorney and John Inverdale. Because we're getting the first live action

today. This is so V Hosking and cat clubland in the women's lightweight

double sculls. There in positive double sculls. There in positive

seconds before they are off. Great time a British crew comes up on the

big screen. We're on the starter's orders.

Copeland will be closest to us. The last time some of the crews came

together was in Munich when Great Britain finished 4th. Denmark were

ahead of them in second place so watch out for that little novel

week. New Zealand recorded the world's fastest time in Lucerne and

us. There is such expectation on British teams. Everyone is waiting

just to get through the heat, get that out of the way. Laid out the

marker of exactly where your car. Their coach has been very

encouraged by their last six weeks of training. They came together

only this year. They go through the 500m mark in second place. New

Zealand leading. Their last game together in masseur and. And on

that occasion New Zealand were quicker than the British double.

New Zealand currently holders of the world's best time. The world

champions, Greece, are in the next heat. So important for the British

to open up their Olympic campaign with a good result. They will not

be too concerned by New Zealand on the far side at the moment. There

are looking good, moving very well. They have certainly picked up speed.

Sophie has moved back into the stroke seat. Up until now it was

Kat Copeland. This is good sculling from the British double. Great

Britain have found over them now that is efficient. There have been

tracking New Zealand in the first 500 metres will stop there are now

just able to squeeze on and move out to the halfway mark. 1000

metres gone, 1000 to go. And the flags are waving, the crowd going

mad because the British have taken the lead from the world record

holders, using and. -- New Zealand. This is a fantastic performance

from Ms double. Their coach has done a wonderful job in the last

two months to bring them on. There sculling with such confidence. 37

strokes per minute. New Zealand normally do around 38 strokes per

minute. We are beginning to pull out from the top picture there.

This is heat number one in the women's lightweight double sculls.

They will all have waded around two hours before. - weighed in.

There is just no letting up here, moving really sweetly. And New

Zealand under pressure now from well qualified direct through to

the semi-final. Seve Hosking from London Rowing Club and Katherine

Copeland from Leeds a rowing club looking absolutely fabulous. Job

well done so far. They now just need to keep a cool head. This is

lightweight rowing at its very finest. New Zealand were first in

Munich, second at Lucerne. Look at his British double, they have

totally exposed them. There is now about 4.5 lengths between them and

Denmark. No-one will catch this British double. We are well and

truly into a tunnel of Norway's on both sides of the course. They are

going to relish the prospect. It is all coming together very well. It

is eight cannot of Norway's. They can enjoy this last scull up

towards the line. On the far side New Zealand are struggling. Serve

the Hosking and Katherine Copeland coming up to the line. A well

deserved first place. They are through to the quarter-final and

they acknowledge that. They are on the right track. Then Mike coming

in second. New Zealand, the world's best time holders, are really

suffering, into third position. There will be a little bit of

demonstration from them. The change pudding Sophie Hosking in stroke.

Katherine Copeland is a very strong athlete. She is now back in the bow.

Sophie Hosking set the rhythm and that was a superb performance.

Britain and Denmark go through to The Olympics in London, do not

forget your umbrella. That was fantastic and they are looking good.

There are rumours in the camp, that the lightweight double is going

very well, keep an eye out for them. People have been asking me if they

have a chance of a medal and that has proved they have. It is easy to

understand when batsmen say they lack confidence and copper say they

have got problems with their swing. How confident do you have to be in

rowing? Katherine Copeland exuded confidence and said she was going

to surprise a lot of people, just believe me. The sceptics were

thinking not. You have got to have confidence. The Americans are very

good at building themselves up, but when that bubble bursts, it

explodes everywhere. In this country when we have got confidence

it is justified because of the performance. The rumours I have

heard, they have proved it and their confidence is up and raring

to go. We have got Greece in the next race. It has stopped now.

it has not, it is raining on me. Greece will be interesting. Zac

Purchase and Mark Hunter, the champions from Beijing, in about 25

minutes' time. What a fantastic start, all about

getting to the next stage of the competition. There is no rain at

the Olympic Park. In just over an hour's time the women's road race

in cycling will get under way. Yesterday it was disappointing for

Mark Cavendish, and today Nicole Cooke is defending her title. How

will this one pan out? Nicoll takes it and she is the Olympic champion.

On paper she is the sprinter and Nicole is the aggressive rider. We

are going with a two-headed attack. It will be very clear going into

the race what our options are and what our strategies are. We will go

in with a number of options and see what happens. It is a benefit to

have different options. As the race unfolds you have to work out the

best way to play it. You need to sacrifice your own chances for your

own team-mates at at different phases in the race, just like they

will do it for you. Are you confident that when it comes down

to a bunch sprint you will be the protected by do? The S. As with the

meant this race starts and ends on The Mall and watching it with us

will be Baroness Tanni Grey- Thompson. What do you make of the

relationship between these two riders? It has been difficult in

the past and there were issues last year over the tactics. But they

seem to be quite happy with where they are. They are presenting a

united front. It depends what happens in the race. If it comes

down to a sprint finish Lizzie is the strongest and that is where the

team will be supporting her. But it will be a different race from

yesterday. It will be very hard from the start because everybody is

looking to Marianne Vos as the favourite. It might give GB a

little bit more of a chance to play their own tactics. Who I the other

main contenders? Marianne Vos has come in with five soldiers. She is

desperate to went. There is Judith Arndt from Germany. There are only

five women's teams with four riders. There is Giorgia Bronzini from

Italy. We think Holland will race hard. We will be back in over an

hour for the start of that race. There was a fantastic atmosphere

yesterday, so I am sure it will be the same today. You can watch it

live on BBC Three. On BBC One it is time for a more swimming. It has

been a very busy morning already. We are going to reflect briefly on

the 100m backstroke. Gemma Spofforth spoke to Sharron Davies.

You would have liked to have got that touch in? Yes, the finish was

not great. I have got a lot more in me. I will let the excitement died

down a little bit. No matter how experienced you are, none of us

have ever competed in front of a home crowd like this. I have said

all the a rock -- all year long that I will come back tonight and

give it the best I have got. Do you feel the last few months have given

you enough time to get you back to what you are capable of doing?

race was not quite what it was in training, but I will figure out

what I can do now. Gemma Spofforth being very honest. I was distracted

by the earrings. She has a real chance of making the

semi-finals. 12 in their heats, but if you look from 16 to third, there

is just over half a second. Making those tiny improvements and she is

experienced and she can use this crowd and she knows she can swim

faster. What I like more than anything else is she has got a

smile on her face and she is being positive. It seems the mood in the

British camp among the women is very positive. Let's hope that

feeds through. We are going to see Kate Haywood from a great present.

Larsson from the UK is also there. She is the shock winner from the US

trials. Jessica Hardie, the world Larsson of the USA won the American

trials. That is Suzuki of Japan. Larsson beat Rebecca Sonia. --

American trials. They did not even consider her a hopeful. Look at

that big effort. I think that was lane six. The German. Larsson is in

Number four, with the white cap. She has got a very controlled

stroke. That was a decent turn, maybe not the best turn. The best

turn came from Suzuki of Japan. At the moment Kate Haywood is going

reasonably well. She has got to wind it up in these last few metres

That will not get through. Larsson only started competitive swimming

three years ago. She is 20 now. Competitive swimming aged 17.

never too late. She must have a natural talent in athleticism. And

if you get the right coaching... She did get the right coaching. She

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 51 seconds

said she needed a goal and she was She had a fantastic swimmer in the

June trials to make the team. A real talent for the future. In lane

number to the German has been Chiffon O'Connor is still going

well. She is still hanging in. This is a very fast heat. Siobhan

O'Connor is just outside the time she did at the trials. That was

also on the last 25 metres. She is accelerating the stroke. It is

quite hard to explain, but it is like a roller-coaster and the

momentum is building and building. All the way through to the finish

she was in control. That is very dangerous and ominous. I think they

will struggle to beat her tonight. She didn't do well enough to make

it through to the semis. Neither of them through. But they did have a

private battle. That is basically because the bottom line is it is a

relay spot. Our fast as backstroke, breaststroke, Butterfly and

freestyle will make up the medley relay. Those two girls will not go

through to the semis, so whoever was fastest, Siobhan-Marie, she

will go into the medley Arena. They have a good chance of getting a

medal Margaret Forster Guy 4G did great. 16th. A tiny bit of her best

time but she performed well. She is time but she performed well. She is

only 16, but we saw a 15-year-old from Lithuania, trained in Plymouth,

when the first heat. She was up against Leisel Jones and Pickett.

Meilutyte blasted into the water. Her trainer has had a lot of cut -

not good swimmers come through. You get different training groups

around the world and they train with some of the best coaches. We

need to get a few of our own breaststroke swimmers to train

the likes of Rebecca Soni and Larsson and Piggott. -- Pickett.

Rebecca Adlington coming up in the I've been watching with Ian Thorpe.

It's been such an action-packed morning at the Aquatics Centre of.

It feels like the swimmers of putting everything into the heats.

We had an Olympic record set today. We did. Emily Seaborne, from

Australia, surprise to sell but how fast she swam up. -- Seebohm a. We

saw it in the 200 freestyle, some of the top guys were able to swim

comfortably and get through, like Lochte and Sun, who got through as

they should. But we are seeing the level of swirling around the world

lived so high that you can't take the heats for granted. We saw

Michael Phelps almost miss out on a final place in that 400m, the event

that he won just four years earlier. But where you finish in Naheed has

a role in which lane you are going to swim in in the final. Generally

speaking, you want to be with the action. You want to be in the top

four positions, bobbing through to the semi-final on the final. That

way you know where the best competitors are rat. You have a

good few, if you needed, to be able to swim off them and be able to get

through to the next round, or gain some distance to be able to get

that gold. It is not all about hard work, although clearly there's

plenty of training for all of the swimmers, but the US swimming squad

have taken a bit of time out to # Welcome to the land of fame and

excess, am I going to fit in? # This is also crazy.

# Everybody seems so famous. # Nodding my head like, yeah.

They had fun making it, we've had fun watching it. I don't know who

did the vocals but they are very impressive. The they are talented

and more than one way. It's amazing. They sound a lot like Miley Cyrus.

For did you ever do anything like that with the Australians? This is

a team-building exercise. You have the older swimmers in the team and

the youngest swimmers in the team, so you break down looking at this

person as a superstar as you were growing up. So you have team

building and silly things like this which actually bring a team

together. You see the City side to someone you thought was just an

amazing competitor, then you gel together. Someone who looks like

she has been having fun today, she's been in competition making

her Olympic debut at Greenwich Park in the dressage, and that is Zara

Phillips. We've just heard from her after her competition.

Zara, so much pressure on you but that looked fantastic out there.

Yet, obviously I had a couple of mistakes but that will be the

second biggest test he has done. I was really pleased with the way he

dealt with everything. He is still learning. Unfortunately, I missed...

The changes are good but I missed one, which you get punished for.

But hopefully we can improve tomorrow. What went through your

mind when those changes went wrong, because you seemed to really retain

your composure? I know he's got good changes, it's just he's not

quite secure at counter canter, because -- that's probably why I

didn't get the bend right for his change. But it -- his other ones

are lovely. We've long talked about the fact you have missed out, you

weren't in Beijing. But Beijing, but not Athens. We've talked about

the fact you could have been at the last two Olympic Games but you

didn't make it because of the injuries to Toy Town. How has it

been for you getting out at the Olympic Games? It's been good. The

Olympics is the best show on earth. It is incredible to be here and to

be able to compete for your country, to try and do the best for your

team-mates. The support is amazing. The location and everything, it has

been an unbelievable experience. I'm just trying to enjoy it.

cross country tomorrow, how do you think you will get on in that?

is a stronger face. This is probably his weakest phase.

Hopefully we can just improve and hope that the cross country really

makes a difference to the rest of the competitors. Will he be

nervous? Probably. Until you get on the horse, then you are fine.

whole country is rooting for you. It must be a feeling of relief to

have made that strong start in the dressage. It will be Tina Cook and

William Fox-Pitt who will be competing for Britain today, as

that competition continues. Men's beach volleyball is live now one

BBC Three, if you want to see how they're doing over there. Here on

BBC One in just under half an hour, it will be Rebecca Adlington's turn

to be in the pool for but heats of the women's 400 metre freestyle.

Before that, Liam Tancock will be in action again. Lots of interest

in the Aquatics Centre. We will see Liam Tancock shortly.

First, let's hear from Kate Haywood, who didn't manage to qualify for

the semi-finals from the breaststroke heats earlier. But

when she got out of the water, she talked to Sharron Davies.

This is going to be your last meet. How are you feeling? Disappointed

but it was always going to be tough. It's been a tough couple of years,

I moved away from my Helmand changed my whole life. Yeah, I'm

gutted, I thought I was better than that but maybe it's my time to give

it to the youngsters and move on. You've been a great ambassador for

British swimming for a very long time, are there a lot of people

you'd like to thank? I'd like to thank Graham Basij, my first coach,

then Ben, I was with him for eight years. Owen Taylor coached me the

past couple of years. Obviously my family. And the main person, Kevin,

my boyfriend. He moved with me and he has based be supported me this

whole time. -- basically supported me. Poor Kate Haywood. And inside

there into how much swimmers actually have to completely give up

their life for training. Yes, the sacrifices you make. She trained in

the UK forever. When she was a junior she was an unbelievably

talented swimmer but never really made the shift into senior swimming.

Went off to Australia, packed her bags, her boyfriend went with her.

That's a huge sacrifice. People would love to go and live in

Australia but the fact that he moved his job and moved their life

together, you can see how much it meant to her. She was devastated.

It is just not a sport you can take short cuts with. You have to do the

hours and hours, and Kate has done that. So, too, as Liam Tancock, who

is a double world champion. But that is in the 50m. That is not an

Olympic event. He has to go 100. Before we see him in action, let's

on, Liam, get the touch. Well done, Liam Tancock. World champion again.

Normally we think of you of being a 50 metre swim a, you've got to to

step up to the 100m. Do we need them to shout really loudly for the

last 20 metres to get to through it? Yes. People talk about home

crowd advantage in football and rugby week-in, week-out. In London,

there's going to be 17,500 people when I walk out of the block.

Hopefully it's going to be electrifying. Most people think of

me as a 50 metre swimmer, becoming world champion in 2009 and

retaining it in 2011, and breaking a world record. But it's not really

been my focus. It sounds a bit strange, it's a big thing,

Commonwealth champion is an amazing experience, pretty incredible.

Something I can keep with me forever but the 100 is the thing.

It's what I've been training for. I can't wait to stand behind the

block. The French and the Americans are probably big rivals in the pool.

Do you look at your rivals or just focus 100 % on your performance?

Swimming is a strange event, no one can affect you unless you let them.

I don't even think about who is next to me. I don't care if I'm

raising the Devon champion or the world champion. It will not change

the way I swim. I swim for me, and best when the way that I know I can

swim to swim fast. You have introduced some rock climbing and

ballet into your training, but a few people might be inquisitive

about. How has that work? It's weird, people look at ballet and

they think, why would you do ballet, you are a swimmer? We look at other

athletes and think about what attributes they have and if they

can transfer to the pool. Look at a ballet dancer, someone who is slim,

Great Court, greater physique, very aware of the body position, be

warned that in the pool. We want to be toned, we want to be aware of

our hands and feet placement. We want to know where our hand enters

and. Our toes and kick through the water, so that's a good crossover.

We also do kick-boxing, which is completely opposite de ballet, but

that is controlled aggression that we need in the water as well. For

me it is a no-brainer. We are talking about hundreds of a second,

and it I can gain that by doing something slightly different, it's

not that I do less in the pool ATOL, I do more. It is a bonus. If I can

get that hundreds of a second, I'll be the one laughing. It is so

interesting because you do have to think tangentially. You have to

come up with ideas. I love that he says, right, I'll go and do ballet.

You think outside the box, there's a guy doing ballet and everyone is

raising their eyebrows. But he described did well, the hand

position in the water, the core strength. It's lovely that they

look outside these different things. It is not just about swimming. It

used to be, 20 or 30 years ago, you just swam up. Then Waits became

involved, cross-training, running, I did a lot of running on the track

to get that explosive power. Some do rock-climbing, there are

different ways of working your body and you don't have to keep going in

the water all the time. You are a sprinter. How hard is it a Liam

Tancock, who really specialises in 50, to go 100 and win a medal?

used to be the world record holder at 50 butterfly. It was never an

Olympic event, I could do it at other events but never at the

Olympic Games, which is what everyone talks about. But to go

double the distance is difficult. You have to train your body in

slightly different ways but if it is -- if he has done more

conditioning work and endurance work, it just means you can come

back and finish the race properly. These heats are seeded, so the

better, faster swimmers come later. Let's show you Chris Walker-Hebborn,

of Great Britain, he is in lane seven. He turned in third place,

this was in one of the earlier heats. He has a Red cap. He is very

close to the camera. Trying desperately to register a time fast

enough that might see him through to the semi-finals. There are three

more heats. There are 24 swimmers on paper that are faster going in.

He has to go as fast as possible. It's not like a lot of sports where

we are going to be on the podium. They have to go as fast as possible

to make it through to the semis. encouraging swim but probably not

fast enough. Here we go. Live metres backstroke, and Liam Tancock,

in the red hat, in the centre, and a good start. The red hats of Great

Britain next to the record holder. The phrase crowd-pleaser is

applying to Liam Tancock. I think he has not used all his energy,

which is great. Sometimes he gets excited and uses too much, but he

has turned well on his side. Neck- and-neck, these two it will battle

through the last 50. 25 metres to go. Liam Tancock really needs to

hold his arm stroke. This will be hurting. But he is doing well.

Going very well. Also the French world champion. As smooth a

turnover. Tancock 53.8, in second, so that will put him through to the

semi-final and a good, solid heat swim. Vatican the box, and he has

made it through to the semi-final would still a heat to go -- a tick

in the box. That actually looked very good. Maybe his head moving a

bit too much in the last two metres. De court looked smoother. It will

be tough for him to get a medal though, I still think that -- lack

What a good result for Liam Tancock, finishing second in the heat.

Rebecca Allington will be in the swimming pool later on, but we just

want to take the opportunity to talk to Ian -- Rebecca Adlington.

That was a great swim for Liam Tancock. A 50-metre specialist,

world champion in the backstroke and he has had to prepare himself

knowing that he doesn't get to swim that event at the Olympics, and

looking at that he looked quite comfortable. He would have been in

a lot of pain in the last 15 metres, going into the wall. A fantastic

heat swim. In the semi-final he will look to improve. He is up

there with the best. Is it difficult to make the jump if your

strength is as a 50-metre swim, how hard is it to make the jump to 100

metres? It would be similar to say to Usain Bolt, you know what, at

the next Olympic Games for you can't run at the hundred metres,

you have to run the 200 metres. He could probably do it, but it's a

difficult thing. What else has stood out for you in the heats this

morning? What I think would be interesting to talk about is just

looking at the different sizes we have been swimming. We talk about

women as a global sport and we say smaller, more petite swimmers, and

then the bigger ones, and what I really liked seeing is how they use

the work under water. The smaller swimmers have a higher frequency of

kick over the water compared to the tall ones who can use power and

glide and introduce the kick. is not always the bigger, powerful

ones who will have the total advantage? No, because then body

builders would be swimming. Thank you, Ian. There will be the final

heats later on as we go back to the aquatics centre, but our second

rowing race of the day, the defending champions in the

Talking about like weightier, that is interesting, because there was a

major departure for rowing to admit it was not just about the big boys

taking part and introducing the lightweight category which makes

the sport egalitarian and open to people. Very much so. We had

lightweights and the sport for number of years but it was

introduced after Barcelona as an Olympic event and it has opened the

sport up to more countries. It is great from that point of view. One

of the issues that have a lot of countries doing well in the race.

Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter, the form has been so erratic. What

would you see as a statement of intent? The they have drawn the

world champions. The guys they had a tussle with, and it was nip and

tuck all away. They do not need to win this but they need to show they

they hear the introduction of the Olympic champions, Purchase and

Hunter. The Olympic and world champions, Zac Purchase and Mark

Hunter, in lane at number four. In the shadow of Windsor Castle on a

Sunday morning in July, the Olympic champions get their defence of

their title but they won in such style in Beijing are under way.

They are quickly out. Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter, a really difficult

season that they have had. Six at Lucerne, the middle of the three

regattas. The last time they came together in Munich six weeks ago

they languished at the back of the final in 6th place. They have

worked hard through the summer training camps and are now starting

to look as though they have turned things around. Early days, but this

will be an important race for these guys to win. They have to put a

marker down against New Zealand. They are sculling very well. They

seem to be back on track. The difficulty this season, Mark said

it was about fitness lacking in Munich and Lucerne. Zac Purchase

thought the timing was not right, that the boat wasn't really working

with them. A bit of a difference of opinion, but they have pulled it

together by the look of it. fabulous start in the first 500,

Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter. They have taken the race on. When they

are on form, they find such a brilliant rhythm in the second 500

that takes them through. Let's see what they can do as they start to

stretch it out. They are in at the 5th lane and a being pushed by

Peter Taylor and Storm Uru of New Zealand. They were second behind

the British double scull at the world championships last year.

These two cruise alongside China, who raced earlier in the heats and

they will be watching through the regatta in the event. We are

looking at the British double scull, and they look OK. Yes, looking OK.

Last year at the World Championships New Zealand came

through them, just as it looks like by might do again here. Then the

British push on again. At the New Zealanders were much higher in

number of strokes per minute and they seem to be much more steady in

the way they are sculling. 37 per minute, about the same as the

British. We are watching Great Britain, but a word on the

Australians, the world champions from last year in the lightweight

eight, so they know how to win races. They switched to sculling,

qualified as the Australian double here, so that is one crew what we

will need to look out for. The British have stretched the lead,

but only just as they go through the halfway mark, over New Zealand.

1,000 metres down, and Great Britain, New Zealand and Australia

there. Only two of the boats will qualify automatically for the semi-

finals. The remaining boats will go on into the repechage. The British

look OK. They look good. They have a good flow and they are back to a

good rhythm and they are to it very talented athlete. They are just

naturally talented -- they are two a very talented athletes. They are

stretching out a lead over New Zealand, who look a bit

agricultural in comparison. Very interesting. New Zealand will be

surprised how great Britain have come back from being 67 weeks ago

two leading at the halfway mark. The British have upped their rate

by about a stroke per minute. They know they need to push on hard.

They will hit a wall of noise very shortly and the adrenalin will pump

hard through their body. That will raise them up. All the British

crews have been talking about the rapport here. New Zealand tracking

Australia. There has been a push from Great Britain. They need to

step on, because they come New Zealand. They will get a raw of

support in the next few strokes. -- a roaring a shout of up -- support.

A quarter of the race to go. New Zealand just coming back again. It

is cat and mouse. New Zealand comeback, Great Britain comeback.

This is a hard stage of the race. But they are looking very good and

confident. Mark really has that could swing back to the finish of

the stroke. -- good swing. They have some flexibility to push

through and up those number of strokes again. New Zealand up to 38

already. This is storming up sculling. The Olympic and world

champions back on form on Eton Dorney Lake. They will see an sense

for those flags and the shouts. The adrenalin will start to come round

hard. They know they are on home of water. This is a sensational

opening heat from Great Britain, but the charge is coming again from

New Zealand. Both of these crews are through to the semi-final, but

neither of them want to let up. They want to go through as winners.

This is a battle so the line. The New Zealand crew are pulling for

one more effort, but the British are holding and the champions are

defending. The speed and the drive from the legs is there. They are up

to 40 strokes per minute and opening up again. New Zealand

throwing everything at them but they cannot make an impression.

Into the last 50 metres. New Zealand creeping ever so close, but

the Olympic champions have done enough. They will hold on. They

open up their 2012 Olympic campaign with a magnificent, magnificent

victory. They punched the air and acknowledge the crowd. That was how

important that victory was for them, from a confidence point of view.

New Zealand also through, but that was a personal battle won by Zac

Purchase and Mark Hunter. That was absolutely remarkable. They had

come back from the dead, almost, from six or seven weeks ago. What a

storming race. They put the boat together so well and it is a

natural talent that they both have that has allowed them to just

dominate all the way over the course. A fantastic piece of

sculling. They had a disappointing 2012 season through the regattas.

They started off all right, getting first in Belgrade, then six in at

Lucerne and Munich. They came away with their heads down, but self-

belief here. It is early days, but these guys are the world champions,

the defending Olympic champions and carry the weight of the nation on

their shoulders, but they have set themselves big targets, which is

why it was important for them to win today. And that is what it

For you can tell things are getting exciting because Gary upped the

Herbert metre! For all the doubts people had from the year they seem

to have banished them today. Those doubts have gone. I thought they

could get back from the poor results to getting maybe a medal,

but what they have shown their is they are not after a medal, there

is only one thing they want. The reigning world and Olympic

champions, and they want to win this. That was very big for them.

The Kiwis are very strong and the French have beaten the New

Zealanders in earlier rounds, so at Zealanders in earlier rounds, so at

this stage, both boats were needed to make a statement. Whatever the

New Zealanders threw at them, they can do anything about it. The is

that full throttle? That is for throttle for both boats. I think

the Kiwis have a little bit more to give, but at this boy and they

wanted to win that, and that is not good for the Kiwis -- at this point

The two is always interesting to watch fluctuations in form in sport

-- it is always interesting. Kiwi pair who had been unbeaten for

years and years, winning becomes a habit, when you lose the habit as

Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter have done, how hard is it in a context

of rowing to get it back? Almost impossible. If you finished 6th in

the World Cup races, coming into the major championships, you cannot

turn that round. It is a very consistent sport, but these guys

have the ability and have so much talent. They could not put a figure

on why it was going badly because training was going well, but it is

clicking, and if it is going to click at any time, this is the time

for it. Let's hope somewhere, subliminally, Rebecca Adlington

knows about that. One more race featuring a British crew to come in

the next half an hour and that was That was a fantastic race at Eton

Doni. Hazel is taking the next part of the coverage away. No medals for

Great Britain yet. A nobody panic. Exactly the same situation four

years ago in Beijing, and it all came together that very rainy

Sunday. Nicole Cooke got the first medal in the women's road race, and