Olympic athlete quotes and news

Women's 4*400 gold medal champions
1: The Olympic committee staff rewarded me with two VIP birds' nest athletics finals tickets. During all of the four previous games I watched the Chinese teams compete and heard the Chinese anthem.......This is the first time I've heard the USA national anthem and seen USA athletes on medal ceremony stands. Team USA smashed men's 4X400 relay, while for the women's relay....Russia was dominating the whole way until the final stretch of the fourth leg when USA surpassed Russia.....it was so exciting that the Chinese fans were all chanting U.S.A.
I feel bad for the Belgian high jump gold medalist since the medal ceremony was at the end when most fans (being Chinese where they could care less about a Belgian win) have left the birds' nest already. But for those who stuck around, they were able to literally get down right to the tracks to take pictures. The cheerleading squad and fuwa mascots were chiming in at the end trying to stop the hemorrhage of spectator exodus.
2: To capitalize on how bureaucratic the USOC is........they had unused closing ceremonies tickets. Some USOC VIPs didn't want to go to the ceremonies....and yet volunteers weren't allowed to use them because we "had to work" at the USA house during the closing ceremonies. So as always, the tickets were wasted....even the closing ceremony tickets.
3: Lang Ping with his daughter was hanging out at the USA house again today. Today both the men's and women's volleyball teams partied here.....and the water polo team. Two silver medal teams and one gold medal team.

Here are some real time quotes from famous team USA athletes after their games (from the USOC)

Serena Williams (Tennis/Lynwood, Calif.)
“I think it's awesome how Beijing has come through with the Olympic Games. I love, most of all, the Olympic Lane, so we never have traffic. It's really cool. It wasn't like that the other Olympics I went to. It looks like it was really well‑organized and well put together and well thought out. It's really amazing to see.”

Jennifer Kaido (Rowing/West Leyden, N.Y.)
“It’s exceeded my expectations. We were prepared for smog, pollution, demonstrations, but everything has gone very smoothly. Everyone in the village is great. The volunteers are friendly and so helpful. It’s been an amazing experience to be part of the Olympic Games rather than watching it on television.”

Kate Markgraf (Soccer/Bloomfield Hills, Mich.)
“This is my third Olympics and I think the Beijing Organizing Committee did a fantastic job of taking care of the needs of all the athletes to let them perform at their highest levels. As an athlete coming into the Games, you want nothing more than to be able to focus on your team and your games. We never wanted for anything and the environment that was created for us certainly met, and most of the time exceeded, our expectations. We had a fantastic time in China.”

Tom Paradiso (Rowing/Blue Bell, Pa.)
“The Chinese have gone above and beyond with their preparations and accommodation at these games. It’s going to be really hard for others to reach the standard they’ve set. Everywhere we go the people have been very helpful and friendly. This is my first Olympics, and the size and scope is incredible.”