Olympics 2012: Live Report

2322 GMT: And here's our PHOTO OF THE DAY: American sprinter Allyson Felix, a huge smile on her face, sinking to her knees after the 200m finish, as her two nearest competitors approach behind her. She finally took gold in this event after two previous Olympic silvers, and her look is one of utter joy. 2315 GMT: A recap of today's main action: + Usain Bolt booked his place in Thursday's 200m final with an imperious semi-final victory in 20.18sec as he chases an unprecedented second successive 100m-200m double, while compatriot Yohan Blake won his semi-final in 20.01sec + American sprinter Allyson Felix made it third time lucky to win the women's 200m crown, finally bettering her silver medals from the 2004 and 2008 Games + The men's 110m hurdles saw favourite Aries Merritt lead a USA one-two, taking gold ahead of compatriot Jason Richardson and Jamaica's Hansle Parchment + Russia's Natalya Antyukh won the women's 400 metres hurdles title + American Brittney Reese won the women's long jump with a best of 7.12 metres + China completed a second consecutive clean sweep of the table tennis medals with victory in the men's team final + Kobe Bryant scored 20 points to lead the US' star-studded basketball team over a stubborn Australia 119-86 in their quarter-final + America's Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings beat compatriots Jen Kessy and April Ross to claim their third consecutive beach volleyball title + In the boxing arena, India's five-time world champion M.C. Mary Kom was beaten 11-6 by Britain's second-seeded Nicola Adams in the semi-finals of the women's flyweight competition. 2306 GMT: That result by the United States was never really in doubt -- but Kobe Bryant provided the requisite dazzle for the first outing of their star-studded team. That's the main Olympic action over for the day: stand by for our run-down of today's highlights. 2305 GMT: USA 'DREAM TEAM' BEAT AUSTRALIA 119-86 IN BASKETBALL QUARTER-FINAL 2304 GMT: It's 119-86 with seconds to go. "OH YEAH, The BLACK MAMBA'S strikin' all kindsa Aussie Ass!" tweets Samuel L Jackson. "G'day fellas! Go USA!!" 2300 GMT: Christian Laettner, on the US' "dream team" at the 1992 Olympics, tweets: "Total Kobe show right now!! Hope everyone is seeing it." Our own Jim Slater agrees. "Kobe Bryant unreal!!" he says. "Hit 3 3-pointers in a row, holding his arms out with palms upturned after the last of them as if to say 'can't miss'. "He hit three 3s in 31 seconds and 4 total in 67 seconds." Fans chanting anthony davis as the nba's top draft pick gets in off the bench. LeBron James, who has a triple double tonight dunks for a 114-84 lead in final sedonds. It's done 2258 GMT: Now 107-80 to the Americans. The Australians have put up a strong defensive fight but are now 27 points down -- it seems the floodgates may be opening. 2257 GMT: And back at the BASKETBALL, it's 105-80 to the US dream team as we enter the last five minutes. 2255 GMT: And in the javelin, Kenyan Julius Yego has thrown a new national record of 81.81 metres to qualify for the men's final at the weekend. 23-year-old policeman Yego, who was forced to study YouTube videos of his rivals as his country has no traditional strength in the sport, qualified in ninth spot out of the 12 finalists who made it through from two heats. Yet he nailed all three attempts in front of a vocal 80,000-capacity crowd at the Olympic Stadium, first landing 79.10m, before improving to 79.33 and finally marking the new personal best of 81.81m on his final effort. But Yego will likely be hard pushed in his bid to go for a podium placing, up against the giant likes of in-form Czech Vitezslav Vesely, Norwegian defending Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen and former world champion Tero Pitkamaki of Finland. 2254 GMT: China's 110m hurdles star Liu Xiang has had surgery on his badly ruptured Achilles tendon, the Chinese delegation says. Liu was treated by a specialist London surgeon who reportedly also operated on football star David Beckham. The Chinese delegation said Liu was putting a brave face on the injury which cruelly cut short his campaign for the second Games running, and has possibly ended his career. "He's in pain but he's very brave and optimistic," spokesman Zhang Haifeng told AFP. "It's really a sad thing but his spirit inspires young people very much." 2250 GMT: ATHLETICS: Three-time 200m world champion Allyson Felix says the pain of double defeat on the biggest stage gave her the motivation to succeed and end her long wait for Olympic gold today. Felix, a silver medallist at the 2004 and 2008 Games, dominated a stellar field today to power to victory in 21.88sec, ending the reign of her nemesis Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica. "There were a lot of ups and downs. I definitely had good moments but I think the moments that motivated me most were losing on the biggest stage and just never forgetting that feeling," she says. "I embrace that journey. I embrace the defeats because that's what has pushed me all these years," she tells reporters. 2245 GMT: It's USA 84-70 after the third quarter. Carmelo Anthony and Deron Williams have 15 points each, Kevin Durant is on 14 and LeBron James has 11 points plus 13 rebounds. Patrick Mills and Joe Ingles each have 19 for the stubborn Aussies. 2237 GMT: Olympic commentator (and occasional actor) Samuel L Jackson tweets: "Uh Oh, a Kobe sighting! Could be the start of something BIG! Go USA!!" 2234 GMT: "A chant of 'U-S-A' goes up," Jim reports, "and Kobe Bryant promptly answers with back-to-back 3 pointers. "It's 70-58 USA NBA stars. Not a runaway but some space to feel a little more comfortable. "Aussies showing heart and talent. This isn't over and they are playing an inspired game. Kobe had been misfiring early. That seems to be changing." 2228 GMT: From Jim Slater at the basketball arena: "Well, the Aussies scored the first 11 points of the 3rd quarter, 5 points by Patrick Mills and 2 3-pointers by Joe Ingles, pulling the Boomers within 56-53. "Kevin Durant hit a 3 and Kobe Bryant had 4 points since -- but at 63-56, it's far from a blowout. "Aussies are shutting off the USA fast break scoring now," and David Andersen hits an inside shot 63-58. Stay tuned." 2221 GMT: Australia take 8 points without reply in 15 seconds at the start of the second half, bringing the score to 56-50 with the Americans still leading. The Aussies are doing better than many thought possible. 2210 GMT: From the basketball arena, AFP's Jim Slater reports that Deron Williams has 13 points to lead the USA while LeBron James has 7 points, 6 assists and 10 rebounds. Kevin Durant has 9 points and Carmelo Anthony 8. "Patrick Mills is Australia's pace setter with 12 points. The Boomers only hit 15 of 38 from the field in first half," adds Jim. "They worked some nice plays, got some good shots that didn't drop. Their zip passes from half court to lead man under the basket forced some defensive adjustment by the USA. Should be source of pride for the Down Under folks." 2206 GMT: Half-time in the BASKETBALL semi-final pitting the USA's "dream team" against Australia, and the Americans are starting to pull away: it's 56-42. 2158 GMT: Spanish basketball player Pau Gasol, who earlier helped his country to victory over France and a place in the Olympic semi-finals, tweets: "Our taekwondo has just given us two more medals!! One gold for Joel Gonz�lez and a silver for Brigitte Yag�e!! Great job guys!! #London2012" 2155 GMT: At the BASKETBALL two fast break baskets in a row by Australia prompted Coach K (otherwise known as Mike Krzyzewski) to insert Kevin Love and Deron Williams back into the US lineup. That's a 7-2 Aussie run to cut the deficit to 42-34. 2151 GMT: Another TAEKWONDO bulletin as AFP's Barnaby Chesterman reports that double world champion Joel Gonzalez of Spain has added Olympic gold to his collection, beating South Korea's Lee Dae-Hoon in the men's under-58kg final. World champion Lee had come down from the non-Olympic under-63kg category to compete here in London but went down 17-8. In a low-scoring bronze medal contest Russia's Alexey Denisenko beat Safwan Khalil of Australia 3-1. The second bronze medal went to Oscar Munoz of Colombia who successfully challenged a last second three-point to kick beat Thailand's Pen-Ek Karaket 6-4. 2150 GMT: SPAIN'S GONZALEZ WINS MEN'S TAEKWONDO -58KG GOLD 2144 GMT: Back to the BASKETBALL, the USA are on top 28-21 against Australia after the first period of their semi-final. Patrick Mills has 10 points to lead Australia while Kobe Bryant and Russell Westbrook each have 6 to lead the USA. LeBron James so far has a game-high 6 rebounds but Aussie guard Mills is close behind on four. "Boomers" Mills is only current NBA Aussie player, with San Antonio Spurs. 2134 GMT: Wu Jingyu of China has retained her Olympic crown with a dominant performance in the women's under-49kg category at the ExCel Arena. The twice world champion was always in control of the final against three-time world champion Brigitte Yague of Spain, winning 8-1, reports AFP'S Barnaby Chesterman. Chanatip Sonkham of Thailand won the first bronze medal as she connected with two head-kicks in the final round to help her beat Elizabeth Zamora of Guatemala 8-0. Fifth seed Lucija Zaninovic took the other bronze medal with a golden point to beat Jannet Alegria of Mexico. 2133 GMT: CHINA'S WU WINS WOMEN'S UNDER-49 KG TAEKWONDO GOLD 2130 GMT: One compatriot who won't be staying up to watch the NBA stars is Claressa Shields, through to the finals of the women's boxing. "Goodnight everybody, we got a big task on our hands tomorrow. I'm not settling for Silver, #iCameHereFor1ThingOnlyGold!" she tweets. 2129 GMT: It's 19-12 to the Americans, reports Jim Slater at the basketball. "Two early fouls on Tyson Chandler, the only true big man on the USA squad -- with five getting you ejected from the match, that could force the USA to go with a 'smaller' lineup," he notes. "Still a big, fast, quick bunch but might be harder to force things inside. Just saying..." 2126 GMT: "Our first 'aussie aussie aussie, oy oy oy' chant goes up just 4:24 into the first quarter," reports Jim Slater from the basketball arena. "At 12-12 they have played well, pressing on defence and contesting shots. "LeBron hits two free throws for 14-12 usa lead and USA cuts off a fast break bid by the Aussies. Could be some fun in this one for a while..." 2118 GMT: "USA non-starters in a circle danging and holding hands shouting to each other in a pre-game fire-up display just before the opening tip," reports AFP's Jim Slater from the basketball. "Aussies Joe Ingles miss first shot and Kevin Durant follows with a 3 for USA. Here we go..." 2116 GMT: Australia may feel outgunned here, but they're not necessarily doomed. They can take heart from the fact that the United States lost an Olympic match to Puerto Rico in 2004. 2110 GMT: USA starters are Tyson Chandler, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul. Paul tweeted a few minutes ago: "GAME TIME!!! #USA" Jim Slater reports he's counted 50 USA flags around the arena during the US national anthem. 2105 GMT: With the US NBA stars on the court in just over ten minites, there is an entire lower level of people standing and watching them warm up, reports AFP's Jim Slater from the basketball arena. "Lots of Aussies are in the section for visiting athletes -- looks like Boomers will have good support with yellow and green scattered through the crowd," he says. "But half a dozen US flags in sight already. I suspect USA will have the larger support cheer block." 2100 GMT: BASKETBALL: Not a bad day for Argentina, who have advanced into the Olympic men's basketball semi-finals by defeating arch-rival Brazil 82-77, not long after their women's hockey team also secured a final spot. Luis Scola scored 17 points while Carlos Delfino and Manu Ginobili each added 16. Argentina will face the winner of a later quarter-final between the US NBA Dream Team and Australia. 2055 GMT: Sanya Richards-Ross, who came fifth in the women's 200m earlier despite aiming to complete a rare 200m-400m double, tweets: "Not the result I'd hoped 4 but what a thrill to be a part of such a great field! By far these Olympics have been the greatest exp of my life." 2051 GMT: HOCKEY: Argentina beat Great Britain's women 2-1 in their semi-final. Argentina go through to the final on Friday against the Netherlands, but the Brits still have the chance of a bronze in the playoff against New Zealand. 2050 GMT: Yohan Blake, fresh from breezing through his 200m heat, tweets of his compatriot Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce -- who took silver in the women's event -- "That girl. That girl Shelly Ann. She likkle but she strong and she's a true CHAMPION!!!!" 2047 GMT: America's Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings have won their third straight Olympic women's beach volleyball title by beating compatriots Jen Kessy and April Ross in Wednesday's final. Third seeds May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings won in two sets, 21-16, 21-16, in front of a crowd of 15,000 spectators at London's Horse Guards Parade. 2045 GMT: USA'S MAY-TREANOR, WALSH JENNINGS WIN WOMEN'S BEACH VOLLEYBALL GOLD 2035 GMT: Reese took the long jump gold with a best of 7.12 metres. The two-time world champion finished ahead of Russian Elena Sokolova, who claimed silver with a personal best of 7.07m, with American Janay Deloach taking bronze with 6.89m. 2030 GMT: AMERICAN BRITTNEY REESE WINS WOMEN'S LONG JUMP 2027 GMT: Merritt's time in that 110m hurdles was a personal best and the second fastest time in Olympic history. "My training is very intense and in my practice I do some ridiculous things," Merritt tells the BBC. He says he decided to "treat this like a practice session -- I execute so well in practice, when there's no pressure." It evidently worked, with the US taking the gold in this event for the first time since 1996. 2025 GMT: That's the last track final of tonight, but the women's lon jump and men's decathlon continue -- and if that's not enough, we get an appearance from the US' basketball "dream team" later on. And the women's beach volleyball gold-medal match... 2020 GMT: Defending champion Dayron Robles of Cuba pulled up halfway through the race clutching his left hamstring. 2017 GMT: Jamaican Hansle Parchment took a surprise bronze in a new national record of 13.12sec. 2016 GMT: Jason Richardson of the USA takes the silver in 13.04. 2015 GMT: THE US' ARIES MERRITT WINS GOLD IN MEN'S 110M HURDLES IN 12.93 2014 GMT: Now seen as a likely gold-winner is the US's world number one, Aries Merritt. 2012 GMT: The previous favourite, Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang, is of course out of this race and due to have an operation in London after a serious Achilles tendon tear put him out of the Games. 2010 GMT: Next up: the men's 110m hurdles final. Are you ready? 2007 GMT: That's third time lucky for Felix, who has twice before won silver in the same event. 2004 GMT: Allyson Felix won the women's 200m in 21.88, with Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce taking silver in 22.09 and Carmelita Jeter grabbing bronze in 22.14. Veronica Campbell-Brown, who had hoped to win the crown in three consecutive Games, was fourth in 22.38. 2002 GMT: Carmelita Jeter, also of the United States, took the bronze -- no medal at all for defending Olympic champion Veronica Campbell-Brown. 2000 GMT: And Felix takes it! A huge smile after she crosses the line. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica gets the silver -- more details in a second. 1959 GMT: Also about to run is the US' Allyson Felix, who tweeted a little earlier: "I've been waiting for this opportunity for so long. Praying that His will be done, and not my own. Ready to run my HEART out." 1957 GMT: Just time to draw breath now before the women's 200m final, in which Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown will attempt an unprecedented Olympic treble. Campbell-Brown, winner of the 200m at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, will become the first woman in history to win an individual athletics crown in three consecutive Games if she successfully defends her title. 1956 GMT: And since we promised, here's how AFP is summing up the men's 200m heats from a little earlier: Usain Bolt stayed on track for an Olympic sprint double as he and Jamaican rival Yohan Blake cruised into Thursday's final of the 200m with commanding runs in their semi-finals. Blake strolled to victory in his heat in 20.01sec but eased up before the line, while 100m champion Bolt was imperious as he held off the field to win his race in 20.18sec, looking around all the way down the home straight. 1952 GMT: Silver goes to the US' Lashinda Demus, who clocked 52.77, with bronze going to Zuzana Hejnova of the Czech Republic in 53.38. 1951 GMT: Antyukh, 2010 European championships winner in the same event, took that in 52.70, only 0.06 outside the Olympic record. 1950 GMT: RUSSIA'S NATALYA ANTYUKH TAKES GOLD IN WOMEN'S 400M HURDLES 1945 GMT: ATHLETICS: Next up in the Olympic stadium -- the women's 400m hurdles final. 1940 GMT: Hundreds of people have been evacuated from the New Zealand Olympic team's entertainment HQ in London after a large fire broke out in the barbeque garden. "We've had a rather large fire engulf the outdoor bbq area," confirmed Kiwi House's official Twitter feed. "Everyone is ok. We're closed till further notice." Around 300 guests had packed into the venue near King's Cross in central London to watch their female hockey team's semi-final against the Netherlands when a gas bottle exploded. (And the Netherlands won.) 1935 GMT: WRESTLING: Japan's Kaori Icho has won her third successive Olympic women's freestyle wrestling 63kg gold medal, defeating China's Jing Ruixue in the final at the Excel Arena. Her victory meant Icho remained the lone Olympic champion in an event which only made its debut at the 2004 Games in Athens. Mongolia's Battsetseg Soronzonbold, the 2010 world champion at 59kg, defeated Canada's Martine Dugrenier, a three-time world champion in the non-Olympic 67kg class, for one of the two bronze medals. Dugrennier lost to Icho in her opening bout of the Games. The other bronze was won by Russia's Lubov Volosova, who beat Poland's Monika Michalik 3-1. 1933 GMT: So that's three Jamaicans among the men's 200m finalists. We'll bring you AFP's summary shortly, but first, a short wrestling update... 1931 GMT: The Netherlands' Churandy Martina tops that heat in 20.17, followed by Jamaica's Warren Weir in 20.28. 1927 GMT: A false start by Michael Mathieu of the Bahamas delays this heat. 1923 GMT: Second in that heat was South African Anaso Jobodwana in 20.27. Jackson Quinonez of Spain third in 20.37. The third and last men's 200m semi-final coming up now. 1921 GMT: Usain Bolt talks to the BBC about his upcoming 200m final showdown with teammate Yohan Blake. On the outcome, he says he has "no doubt whatsoever. This is my favourite event so I'm looking forward to it." He's asked about the predictions ahead of this Olympics that Blake could trump him in the 100m and 200m races -- already proved wrong in the 10m final. "That's how people are. They always doubt a champion," says Bolt. "But I never doubt myself." 1918 GMT: And guess who topped that heat? You got it -- Usain Bolt, in 20.18. A little slower than Blake in the previous heat. 1917 GMT: The next 200m heat features the Bolt himself. 1913 GMT: The US' Wallace Spearmon is a whisker behind in 20.02, followed by Christophe Lemaitre of France in 20.03. Yohan Blake tells the BBC of his slackening in pace: "Mistakes do happen. But I'm grateful for where I've come so far." Of the coming final, set to be a showdown with training partner and compatriot Usain Bolt, he says: "He's my very good friend. It's going to be interesting." 1912 GMT: Blake takes it in 20.01 -- an odd run in that he's miles ahead of the rest for much of the race, only to slow down ahead of the line for a very close finish. 1911 GMT: ATHLETICS: Jamaica's Yohan Blake is back on the track at the Olympic Stadium for his 200m semi-final. 1910 GMT: From the BEACH VOLLEYBALL, Tom Williams report that Brazil's Juliana Silva and Larissa Franca came back from the brink to beat China's Zhang Xi and Xue Chen, giving them the bronze medal in the women's tournament. Beaten by America's Jen Kessy and April Ross in the semi-finals, the top-seeded Brazilian pair initially conceded the initiative to the Chinese and found themselvea a set down at a sun-splashed Horse Guards Parade. Bronze medallists in Beijing four years ago, the Chinese duo closed to within two points of victory by going 19-16 up in the second set, but Brazil fought back to level the match and then prevailed 15-12 in the decider. Kessy and Ross meet defending champions Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings in the final later on Wednesday, when May-Treanor and Walsh Jennings will be seeking to win a third consecutive Olympic title. 1905 GMT: Abeba Aregawi of Ethiopia tops the second semi-final -- more details in a moment. 1900 GMT: Asli Alptekin Cakir of Turkey leads the first of those women's 1,500m semi-finals in 4:05.11secs. 1847 GMT: ATHLETICS: Women's 1500m semi-finals next in the Olympic stadium. 1845 GMT: BEACH VOLLEYBALL: AFP's Tom Williams sends this from Horse Guards Parade: "Despite the stately surroundings -- Number 10 Downing Street, home to British Prime Minister David Cameron, backs onto the arena-- the women?s beach volleyball is a raucous affair. "Quite apart from the bikini-clad competitors, fans are treated to blasts of pop music between points, while a tannoy announcer exhorts supporters to clap and show their support throughout the match. "Spectators are also entertained by the Horse Guards Parade Dance Crew, a 14-strong group of men and women in beachwear who dance on the sand court during the change of ends and between sets." 1840 GMT: And here's our summing-up of those heats, from AFP's Luke Phillips in the Olympic stadium: American Aries Merritt raced a scorching 12.94sec to lead all the favourites, including defending Olympic champion Dayron Robles, into Wednesday's 110m hurdles final. In the absence of China's 2004 Olympic champion Liu Xiang, who crashed out in the heats on Tuesday, Merritt won his heat from Barbadian Ryan Brathwaite. Merritt's US teammate Jason Richardson, the shock world champion from last year in Daegu, won his heat in 13.13sec, and Robles of Cuba clocked 13.10sec in winning the third semi-final. Also going through to the final will be Jamaican Hansle Parchment and Cuban Orlando Ortega, with South African Lehann Fourie and Briton Lawrence Clarke advancing as the two overall fastest finishers outside the two automatic spots from each semi-final. 1830 GMT: Cuba's Dayron Robles takes the third heat in 13.10, with Hansle Parchment of Jamaica also through in 13.14. Third-placed is South Africa's Lehan Fourie in 13.28. Stay with us for the final at 2015 GMT, and lots more between now and then. 1827 GMT: Merritt took that in a snappy 12.94secs, with Barbados' Ryan Brathwaite also through to the final in 13.23. China's Xie Wenjun third in 13.34. 1825 GMT: Another American, Aries Merritt, takes that second 110m hurdles heat -- more details in a moment. 1816 GMT: Richardson ran that in 13.13secs, followed by Cuba's Orlando Ortega in 13.26. They're both through to the final, while Britain's Lawrence Clark -- in third in 13.31 -- may have a chance with a fastest-loser spot. Two more heats to come. 1815 GMT: ATHLETICS: America's Jason Richardson takes his 110m hurdles heat, well out ahead of the rest -- more details and times shortly. 1814 GMT: As the hurdlers prepare to race, AFP's Tom Williams sends an update from the BEACH VOLLEYBALL: "The women?s beach volleyball tournament reaches its conclusion tonight, with Brazil tackling China in the bronze medal match before the United States' Kerri Walsh Jennings and Misty May-Treanor attempt to win a third consecutive Olympic title against compatriots Jen Kessy and April Ross. "Horse Guards Parade was bathed in sunshine as the third-place match began, with London landmarks including Big Ben, Downing Street, and the London Eye all visible from inside the arena." 1810 GMT: There's a beautiful setting sun over the Olympic Stadium as javelin players are warming up. It's going to be a big evening of ATHLETICS -- with some diversions to the taekwondo and beach volleyball. The men's 100m hurdle semi-finals start very shortly. 1758 GMT: Many Olympians have been indulging in a bit of retail therapy during their downtime -- visitors do, after all, have to pass through Europe's biggest urban shopping mall to get to the Olympic Park. But British swimmer Francesca Halsall ? who came fifth in the 50 metres freestyle on 4 August ? may be about to go a step further than most. She tweets: "Harrods time yey. Might buy a puppy to make me feel better." 1752 GMT: ATHLETICS: Back for the evening session, the decathletes are on to the high jump. Hot favourite Ashton Eaton of the US has cleared 1.99 metres and is in the lead in the overall standings with 2848 points. Trey Hardee of the US is currently placed second on 2743 and in third is Ukraine's Oleksiy Kasyanov on 2664. 1746 GMT: BOXING: Praise for Mary Kom, who earlier took a bronze in boxing for India, is flooding in from some of India's biggest names. Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar wrote: "Mary Kom is an amazing woman. What an effort to win a medal for India. We all are extremely proud of you." Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also sent his congratulations. 1735: AFP's Pirate Irwin, in the Olympic stadium, has heard from Kriss Akabusi (the 1990 European 400 metres hurdles champion and world 4x400 metres relay champion) about the antics the British team used to get up to -- "including running round in their underpants and having pillow fights with the Australians, as well as hurling water bombs," Pirate reports. We're positively shocked. 1734: Britain's CYCLING legend Chris Hoy, fresh from becoming Britain's greatest Olympian when he powered to a sixth career gold, tweeted a little earlier: "First chance to check my messages, what can I say except thank you to all of you, so kind! Still buzzing from yesterday, what an experience!" 1732 GMT: Meanwhile, at the TAEKWONDO, Wu Jingyu of China is still on course for a second successive Olympic title, having reached the women's under-49kg final, reports AFP's Barnaby Chesterman. The twice world champion has been in devastating form, and ended her quarter-final and semi-final early by accumulating a 12-point lead. It was a great afternoon session for Spain as world number one Joel Gonzalez reached the men's under-58kg final. He was given a scare by Sweden's Uno Sanli (7-6) and Safwan Khalil of Australia (5-3) in his first two rounds but easily overcame Colombia's Oscar Munoz 13-4. Gonzalez will fight South Korea's Lee Dae-Hoon in the final. 1730 GMT: Spain's BASKETBALL victory over France may have been just a semi-final but that didn't stop them from celebrating, reports AFP's Jim Slater. "A dozen male spanish fans in a circle were jumping up and down and dancing and singing in celebration," he says. "A good five-minute party in the main concourse area of the arena with chants and flag-draped supporters meandering in and out of the festivities. Horn blowing too. Can still hear the chants echoing outside in North Greenwich!" 1724 GMT: Still to look forward to this evening: finals in the women's long-jump, 400m hurdles, 200m and -- on a different note -- beach volleyball; the men's 100m hurdles final and gold-medal matches in both men's and women's taekwondo. And an outing by the US' basketball "dream team" in their evening quarter-final against Australia. Oh, and an appearance by Usain Bolt in the 200m semi-finals. Should keep us busy -- stay tuned... 1718 GMT: Spain will play Russia in a men's basketball semi-final on Friday, Jim adds. 1715 GMT: More from AFP's Jim Slater on that Spain basketball win over France: "Spain wins it 66-59, 14 points from Marc Gasol and his brother Pau Gasol adds 10 points and 11 rebounds. Both NBA big men. "Tony Parker and Boris Diaw each had 15 points to lead France. "A hard intentional foul by France's Nicolas Batum on Juan-Carlos Navarro at the end of the game had the Spaniard rise and deliver a few choice words about how hard you do and don't need to shove to get a clock-stopping foul. "Some teammates come over to maybe make it into more -- but thankfully cooler heads prevail, and we get through the final seconds and exchange greetings at mid-court at the finish." 1705 GMT: And now a quick recap of today's key developments so far: + Steve Guerdat, riding Nino des Buissonnets, won the Olympic Games individual show jumping gold at Greenwich Park for Switzerland's first title in the event in 88 years + China completed a clean sweep of all four table tennis gold medals when they beat South Korea 3-0 in the men's team final + India's five-time world champion M.C. Mary Kom apologised after being knocked out of the Olympic Games flyweight semi-finals, while teenager Clarissa Shields kept the US flag flying in the first ever Olympic women's boxing tournament + US world record holder Ashton Eaton made a strong start in the men's decathlon, posting the quickest-ever decathlon 100m time at an Olympics + South Africa's Caster Semenya is through to the semi-finals of the women's 800m along with defending champion Pamela Jelimo of Kenya + Britain's 10,000m Olympic champion Mo Farah secured a berth in the 5000m final along with training partner Galen Rupp of the US and Bernard Lagat, also of the US + Dutchman Raymon Van der Biezen topped the seeding run for the 32-strong men's BMX field, while Australian Caroline Buchanan led the women And in basketball, this just in: Spain's Pau Gasol had 10 points and 11 rebounds to spark the reigning European champions into the Olympic men's basketball semi-finals with a 66-59 victory over France. 1655 GMT: BASKETBALL: AFP's Jim Slater reports from the quarter-final France vs Spain: "Pau Gasol blocked shot leads to Sergio Llull fast break dunk and it's 58-57 to Spain with 5:30 to go. "Crowd on edge, chants and cheers and screams with every missed shot and rebound grab -- winner advances and loser is out and the excitement is here!" 1645 GMT: HOCKEY: The Netherlands (wearing brightest orange) have just beaten New Zealand in a thriller of a women's hockey match. It went to a penalty shootout when the teams drew 2-2 after extra time, and the Netherlands won the penalties 3-1. (In hockey shootouts, unlike football, players get eight seconds to score, in which they can shoot as many times as they want.) Later today is the semi-final pitting Great Britain against Argentina -- with the two nations long at odds over the Falkland Islands, this could be tense. 1640 GMT: Australia's reigning world champion Sam Willoughby was sixth in 38.496 in the BMX seedings, while defending Olympic champion Maris Strombergs was only 11th in 38.697. Another Latvian, Edzus Treimanis, provided spectacular drama when he flew over the handlebars of his bike and landed awkwardly after negotiating a jump badly. He was the only rider of the field to crash but despite not finishing the course he will be allowed to continue. The men's field is now split into four separate heats for Thursday's quarter-finals. 1635 GMT: CYCLING: The men's BMX seeding runs have ended, and Dutchman Raymon Van der Biezen topped the 32-strong field in 37.779sec for the 450m course. Frenchman Joris Daudet, second at the 2012 world championships, was second in 38.221 with another Dutchman, Twan van Gendt, third in 38.339. The riders were jockeying for preferred gate selection for the quarter-final races on Thursday. 1626 GMT: That means China have swept the board, taking all four table tennis golds this year -- as in Beijing in 2008. They won the doubles match 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 11-6). It's long been the unofficial national sport and the Chinese in the arena are cheering, whistling and applauding wildly. 1625 GMT: CHINA TAKE GOLD IN MEN'S TEAM TABLE TENNIS 1620 GMT: From AFP's Jim Slater at the BASKETBALL, we hear that France are leading 37-34 in their quarter-final against Spain, with France's Boris Diaw and Florent Pietrus having taken 10 points each. Two Spanish women fans are dressed as penguins, Jim adds, saying it suits the not especially warm London weather. 1615 GMT: And the Chinese pair take the second game 11-8! Audience becomes a sea of red flags (though there are some Koreans there too -- saw them earlier). 1611 GMT: The Chinese took the first game 11-4 and lead the second 5-3. The Chinese coaches are clapping almost non-stop. Well, they have good reason. 1609 GMT: TABLE TENNIS: Back to the whiff-whaff (as London mayor Boris Johnson likes to call it), China's Zhang has defeated South Korea's Joo 3-1 (11-9 5-11 11-6 11-8). That makes it 2-0 China overall in this final so far. The doubles game now being played. 1600 GMT: Four-time world champion Katie Taylor, of Ireland, wants to inspire more girls to box. (She's also a Republic of Ireland football international.) She tells the press: "I think I am in heaven right now. "Hopefully there are a lot of young girls sitting at home watching this, and they will realise this is what they can work towards." 1555 GMT: BOXING: So we now have all three finals set up in women's boxing at this first Olympics for the sport. World champion Ren Cancan of China will fight Britain's Nicola Adams in the flyweight category, while in the lightweight (60kg) final, favourite Ireland's Katie Taylor goes head to head with second seed Russia's Sofya Ochigava. In the middleweight final 17-year-old Claressa Shields, the United States' final gold-medal prospect in London, will fight Russia's Nadezda Torlopova. All three take place tomorrow. 1550 GMT: WRESTLING: Kaori Icho has extended her lengthy winning streak to stand on the verge of a third Olympic gold after winning through to the 63kg final on the opening day of women's freestyle wrestling. Icho extended her winning streak in matches in which she has actually stepped onto the mat to 150 (she forfeited a clash at the 2007 Asian championships) with her opening bout. Meanwhile compatriot Hitori Obara has defeated reigning Olympic 48kh champion Carol Huynh of Canada to set up a gold medal showdown with Azerbaijan's Mariya Stadnyk, a repeat of last year's world championship final which the Japanese won in Istanbul. 1540 GMT: Zhang takes the third game 11-6. Joo is playing a defensive game against the ferocious Zhang, but he's not giving up without a fight. 1530 GMT: TABLE TENNIS: South Korea's Joo Saehyuk takes the second game of his men's table tennis match 11-5 against China's Zhang Jike, who took the first. Their battle will be followed by another singles match and a doubles match -- after several changes to the system aimed to stop a single team (the Chinese) winning all the medals in this sport, which is hugely popular in Asia. Flags of both sides being waved by spectators, but from the sound of the crowd it's dominated by Chinese. 1526 GMT: CYCLING: The US's Brooke Crain, who crashed in the women's BMX seeding run earlier, recovered enough to cross the line on her bike and is to be allowed to continue, reports AFP's Justin Davies from the track. With only 16 participants, the women's field now splits into two semi-final heats of eight riders. Each heat completes three separate runs on the course and the top four riders from each heat after the three runs qualify for the final. 1523 GMT: TABLE TENNIS: Roars from the crowd as China's Zhang Jike takes the first game of this match, beating Joo Saehyuk 11-9. The South Korean is giving the Olympic champion a tough fight. Zhang now in animated conversation with his coach. 1520 GMT: BASKETBALL: Andrei Kirilenko has scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead Russia over Lithuania 83-74 and into the semi-finals of the men's basketball. Russia will play the winner of a later game between France and reigning European champion Spain in a semi-final on Friday. 1516 GMT: Schroder takes the silver in the jump-off, so it's bronze for Cian O'Connor -- that's Ireland's first medal of this Games. 1515 GMT: More on that showjumping: Guerdat took the title as the only rider to post two clear rounds, while Ireland's Cian O'Connor and Dutch rider Gerco Schroder faced a jump-off to determine the silver and bronze medals. 1505 GMT: SWITZERLAND'S STEVE GUERDAT, RIDING NINO DES BUISSONNETS, WINS INDIVIDUAL SHOWJUMPING GOLD 1500 GMT: TABLE TENNIS: China's Ma Long, former world number one, has beaten South Korea's Ryu Seungmin three games to one in that initial match of the men's team table tennis final. He looks delighted and is almost dancing. Match two pits Chinese Olympic champion Zhang Jike against South Korea's Joo Saehyuk. 1450 GMT: EQUESTRIAN: Nick Skelton, who led Great Britain to team jumping gold on Monday, clips a fence in the second round of individual showjumping, riding Big Star. The four penalty points from this put him joint fifth with fellow Briton Scott Brash, riding Hello Sanctos -- meaning no medals for the Brits. 1445 GMT: HOCKEY: Not a medal match, but still a memorable moment: German great Natascha Keller sets up a goal with her very last touch as she bows out of women's international hockey with a world-record 425 caps. Keller, 35, presented a clear scoring opportunity to Marie Mavers, who gobbled up the chance in the last minute. The 2004 champions beat South Korea 4-1 in the Olympic classification match for seventh and eighth place. 1440 GMT: CYCLING: Back at the BMX, the women's seeding has concluded with Caroline Buchanan of Australia holding onto the top spot, followed by the Kiwi Sarah Walker. Now for the men's seeding. 1435 GMT: TABLE TENNIS: The men's team table tennis final is getting going now, with China favoured to add to their gold tally by completing a second consecutive clean sweep in the sport. They're up against South Korea. 1424 GMT: Australia's Caroline Buchanan takes the top spot! She bounces round the course in 38.434. 1420 GMT: The US's Brooke Crain has a nasty crash with only two jumps to go, landing on her front over a jump and bouncing -- she looks winded and possibly injured. The spectators applaud in sympathy as she is led off. 1416 GMT: She's now been pipped to the top spot by New Zealand's Sarah Walker, who is top of the standings with a time of 38.644 seconds. 1415 GMT: CYCLING: Britain's Shanaze Reade is currently first in the women's BMX standings, having finished the track in 39.368 seconds. 1400 GMT: BOXING: Apparently India's Mary Kom apologised after being beaten in the women's 51 kg flyweight semi-final earlier by Britain's Nicola Adams, leaving her with a bronze medal. But Indian tweeters are piling in to tell their medal-winner not to be sorry. "Hearty congratulations to Mary Kom. She has not only won a bronze but also the hearts of a billion Indians! We are all proud of her," tweets Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. 1355 GMT: CYCLING: The BMX events are getting going shortly at the Olympic Park after yesterday's excitement in the velodrome. The circuit has undergone changes after a test event last year in which several riders were injured and the course was dubbed too extreme. It's only the second Olympics for this sport, which makes for dramatic viewing. And the race is unlikely to be as Brit-dominated as the track events, with Australia's Sam Willoughby and Frenchwoman Magalie Pottier among the gold contenders. Seeding runs today take the form of individual time trials, then there are knockout rounds tomorrow followed by finals Friday. 1345 GMT: EQUESTRIAN: Over at the showjumping -- taking place on a whimsical set in Greenwich that includes an opportunity to jump over the moon -- only six riders went clear in the first round of the individual final, from which the top 20 go through to the final round later today. Nick Skelton, 54, on Big Star, who led Great Britain to team jumping gold on Monday, was one of the six, reports AFP's Nick Reeves from Greenwich, and is joint top of the standings. Also among the 20 going through is Ian Millar, the 65-year-old Canadian who is appearing at a record tenth Olympics. But Canada's defending champion Eric Lamaze, who picked up 12 faults on Derly Chin de Muze, and Saudi Arabia's Prince Abdullah al-Saud were among those who didn't make the cut. The second round starts shortly. 1338 GMT: BASKETBALL: AFP's Jim Slater is watching the Russia v Lithuania quarter-final. "25-17 Russia midway into 2nd quarter," Jim tells us. "Lithuania fans chanting 'Lie-u-va' but Russia outplaying them for now. Big plays by future Minnesota Timberwolves NBA teammates Alexey Shved and Andrei Kirilenko for Russia." There was some bad news for Lithuanian captain and NBA Toronto Raptors forward Linas Kleiza just before the game. He was banned from driving for a month for speeding in his Bentley through a Lithuanian village. 1333 GMT: ATHLETICS: More coming in on Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang's operation today -- his surgeon has apparently previously treated footballer David Beckham. Liu is bearing up well under the circumstances, said Chinese Olympic committee spokesman Zhang Haifeng. "He's in pain but he's very brave and optimistic," he said. "He's in bed in the Athletes' Village. I visited him yesterday and talked a little bit and gave him some greetings." 1320 GMT: Ireland's Katie Taylor has made it through to the finals of the women's lightweight 60kg, defeating Mavzuna Chorieva of Tajikistan. 1309 GMT: Kom gets a bronze medal after making it through to the semis. It's been a remarkable journey for Kom, a mother of two, who grew up as a poor farmer's daughter in northeast India's troubled and remote state of Manipur. When she first started out, she had to keep her love of boxing secret from her family, who were worried about her getting injured. How proud they must be now. 1302 GMT: BOXING: India's Mary Kom has been beaten in the women's 51 kg flyweight semi-final by Britain's Nicola Adams. "Magnificent Mary", a five-time world champion, was defeated by Adams in front of an electric audience including British Prime Minister David Cameron and British boxer Amir Khan. 1257 GMT: SAILING: More now on that Australian gold in the sailing. Iain Jensen and Nathan Outteridge seized victory in the 49er two-man skiff sailing. That takes Australia's total medal tally to 26 including five golds. New Zealand's Peter Burling and Blair Tuke got silver and bronze went to Denmark's Allan Norregaar and Peter Lang. 1251 GMT: ATHLETICS: The sight of star Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang crashing out was one of the sorriest of the Games so far -- and even left one presenter on Chinese state television sobbing on air. Now Liu is set to have an operation in London on the serious Achilles tendon tear which put him out. "He will have an operation today," Chinese Olympic committee spokesman Zhang Haifeng told AFP. "Both Chinese and local doctors examined him yesterday. He's almost broken his right tendon." The 110m hurdles final is coming up later today at around 2015 GMT. 1239 GMT: That said, this news just through: GOLD FOR AUSTRALIA'S OUTTERIDGE AND JENSEN IN 49ER SAILING 1237 GMT: Australia's relative lack of success at the London Games was mentioned earlier -- and has meant the country's sports minister losing an embarrassing bet. Kate Lundy will put on a Team GB shirt and row the Olympic course after betting her British counterpart that Australia would take more medals than the hosts. With Britain well ahead and four full days to go, she has now conceded, telling Channel 4 news: "It's a traditional wager that we have with the UK sports minister so I don't regret it, it was always going to be on, and I've already conceded I know I'm going to be rowing out of Eton." 1226 GMT: ATHLETICS: US decathlete Bryan Clay, the 2008 gold medallist who did not make it to this year's Games, is live tweeting the men's decathlon. He says Eaton's first shotput was 14.55 metres and that Karpov of Kazakhstan has thrown 16.47 metres. Eaton is currently leading on 2079 points ahead of Trey Hardee of the US on 1936 and Canada's Damian Warner on 1925. 1201 GMT: Seven athletes from Cameroon who have gone missing from the Athletes' Village have visas to stay in Britain until November and have done nothing wrong at this stage, Games organisers LOCOG said this morning. However, the Cameroon team have asked for help in finding them and police have been informed. The state daily Cameroon Tribune has reported that the seven were five boxers, one swimmer and one female football player. 1147 GMT: TAEKWONDO: AFP's Barnaby Chesterman is having an ear-splitting time of it covering the women's 49kg today. "If you think some women tennis players shriek when they hit the ball, then you should come and watch taekwondo!" he says. "Germany's Sumeyye Manz is Monica Seles, Maria Sharapova and a toddler having a tantrum all wrapped up into one." 1126 GMT: The sixth and final women's 800m heat sees Saudi Arabia's Sarah Attar finish last. Attar, the first Saudi female athlete to compete in a track event at the Olympics, got a huge cheer from the crowd as she crossed the line clad in a green tracksuit top, black trousers and with her head covered. The race was won by Kenya's Janeth Jepkosgei Busienei. 1120 GMT: ATHLETICS: Nataliia Lupu of Ukraine wins her 800m heat. Palestinian athlete Woroud Sawalha, running with her head covered, finishes last. 1115 GMT: A quick recap now of the day's highlights so far. + There were gold medals for Hungary in the women's kayak K4 and men's kayak K2, plus Norway's Eirik Veras Larsen in the men's kayak 100m sprint and Germany's Sebastian Brendel in the canoe 1000m sprint; + US world record holder Ashton Eaton made a strong start in the men's decathlon, posting the quickest-ever decathlon 100m time at an Olympics; + South Africa's Caster Semenya is through to the semi-finals of the women's 800m along with defending champion Pamela Jelimo of Kenya; + Britain's 10,000m Olympic champion Mo Farah secured a berth in the 5000m final along with training partner Galen Rupp of the US and Bernard Lagat, also of the US. 1107 GMT: The fourth women's 800m heat sees victory for defending champion Pamela Jelimo of Kenya with Britain's Lynsey Sharp second and Greece's Eleni Filandra third. All are through to the semis. 1102 GMT: Ashton Eaton continues his strong performance in the decathlon with a long jump of 8.03 metres. He looks pleased with that, clapping as he emerges from the sandpit. 1058 GMT: The third women's 800m heat sees Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi, Canada's Jessica Smith and Genzeb Shumi of Bahrain qualify automatically. 1050 GMT: The second women's 800m heat is won by Russia's Mariya Savinova with Alice Schmidt of the US second and India's Tintu Luka third. Turkey's Merve Aydin pulled up injured but bravely finished the race some way behind the others and in tears, to huge cheers from the crowd. 1040 GMT: Semenya comes second in her heat but the US's Alysia Johnson Montano won in 2:00.47 after streaking ahead into an early lead -- though she looked exhausted at the end. Johnson Montano was wearing a red flower in her hair for the race. This is a signature look for her but this time the BBC reports it was in honour of her grandmother's 100th birthday. The third automatic qualifier was Halima Hachlaf of Morocco. 1035 GMT: Now South Africa's Caster Semenya is up in the women's 800m heats. 1030 GMT: Some sad news from the decathlon -- former world record holder Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic has pulled out with injury. With the long jump now under way, the US's Ashton Eaton is in the lead with 1027 points. 1025 GMT: Results from that second 5000m heat -- it was won by Ethiopia's Dejen Gebremeskel with his countryman Yenew Alamirew in second. But it was a fast race and there will be a large number of others through to the final, including Rupp and Lagat. 1009 GMT: The second 5000m heat is now under way, featuring Galen Rupp and Bernard Lagat of the US. Australia's Craig Mottram is the early leader. 1006 GMT: Farah tells the BBC that he felt "a bit tired" in that 5000m heat -- but he and the others now have a couple of days to recover before Saturday's final. The other qualifiers from that heat were Lopez Lomong of the US and Hagos Bebrhiwet of Ethiopia. 1001 GMT: ATHLETICS: Azerbaijan's Hayle Ibrahimov wins that 5000m heat in 13:25.23 with Koech second and Farah third. Huge cheers from the home crowd for Farah in the closing laps. They're all through to the final. 0952 GMT: HUNGARY ALSO WIN WOMEN'S KAYAK K4 GOLD 0951 GMT: Back now briefly to Eton Dorney, where HUNGARY'S RUDOLF DOMBI AND ROLAND KOKENY HAVE WON GOLD IN THE KAYAK K2 1000M. 0948 GMT: And they're off for 12-and-a-half laps of the track, with Kenya's Isiah Kiplangat Koech setting the early pace. 0942 GMT: Coming up now we have the men's 5000m first round featuring British 10,000m gold medallist Mo Farah. Farah, who entered the stadium to a huge cheer, is warming up and wearing sunglasses. 0929 GMT: A cool-looking Eaton runs 10.35 secs in his 100m heat -- the fastest ever Olympic decathlon time. Fellow American Trey Hardee is second in 10.42 secs. 0923 GMT: Former decathlon world record holder Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic has just run 11.54 secs in the 100m, coming seventh in his heat -- a slow start. 0920 GMT: Favourite for decathlon gold this year is US world record holder Ashton Eaton. But the 24-year-old has played down the prospects of a new world record in London, saying last month it was unlikely given the pressures at the Games. 0915 GMT: ATHLETICS: The men's decathlon is under way and Kazakhstan's Dmitriy Karpov has made a strong start, running 10.91 secs in the 100m. Bryan Clay, the US 2008 gold medallist who is not taking part this time round, says on Twitter: "Looks like a great morning for decathlon. Not too cold, not too muggy, and slight tail winds. Should be good if everything holds up." 0907 GMT: GERMANY'S SEBASTIAN BRENDEL TAKES GOLD IN CANOE 1000M SPRINT 0858 GMT: Larsen briefly slumped on his back at the waterside, exhausted after that win. Silver went to Canada's Adam van Koeverden and bronze to Germany's Max Hoff. 0850 GMT: NORWAY'S EIRIK VERAS LARSEN WINS GOLD IN MEN'S KAYAK 1000M SPRINT 0842 GMT: There has been a lot of soul-searching in Australia about the country's relatively poor performance at the Games. But today's papers there finally found something to cheer about after Sally Pearson won gold in the 100m hurdles and Anna Meares won in the cycling sprint final. Australia is currently in 11th place in the medals table, with four golds and a total of 25 medals. 0836 GMT: Speaking of medal tables, an Australian newspaper has been scolded by North Korea's official news agency after referring to the country as "Naughty Korea" in its medal tallies, while South Korea was tagged as "Nice Korea." "This is a bullying act little short of insulting the Olympic spirit of solidarity, friendship and progress and politicising sports," the KCNA news agency said. But the paper in question, free tabloid mX which is published in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, called its approach "humorous but harmless." 0822 GMT: The three most successful individual athletes at the London Games so far are all US swimmers. Michael Phelps leads the way with six medals -- four gold and two silver. Then it's Missy Franklin with four golds and one bronze, and Allison Schmitt with three golds, one silver and one bronze. 0817 GMT: Let's take a look at how the medals table stands ahead of today's action. In first place is China, with 34 gold, 21 silver and 18 bronze -- a total of 73 medals. In second is the US, with 30 gold, 19 silver and 21 bronze -- a total of 70. And in third is host country Britain, with 22 gold, 13 silver and 13 bronze -- a total of 48. 0812 GMT: Here are more details on some of today's highlights, with timings: + Jamaica's Veronica Campbell-Brown is bidding to become the first woman ever to win an individual athletics crown in three successive Games. Having won the 200m in 2004 and 2008, she is going for another gold in the event at 2000 GMT; + After his lightning-fast 100m victory, Jamaica's Usain Bolt is up in the 200m semi-finals at 1910 GMT; + South Africa's Caster Semenya makes her Games debut in the opening round of the women's 800m at 1035 GMT. She famously faced drug and gender tests after her 2009 World Championship victory and was later barred for nearly a year before being cleared to run again. + The US's basketball Dream Team faces Australia in the quarter-finals at 2115 GMT; + China look well placed to take another gold in the table tennis men's team final at 1430 GMT. WELCOME TO AFP'S OLYMPIC LIVE REPORT for August 8. It's another exciting day on the athletics track with the women's 200m final and men's 200m semi-final featuring Usain Bolt among the highlights to look out for. Outside the athletics stadium, there is also plenty going on, including the table tennis men's team final and basketball quarter-finals where the US's Dream Team will face Australia. Stay with us for all of today's action. Allyson Felix of the United States celebrates after winning the women's 200m final at the Olympics on Wednesday. US guard Kobe Bryant celebrates after scoring against Australia during their London 2012 Olympic Games men's quarter final on Wednesday. From left, the US' Aries Merritt, Cuba's Dayron Robles and the US' Jason Richardson compete in the men's 110m hurdles final at the London Olympics on Wednesday. Merritt took gold.