Updated at 5:39 p.m., Sunday, July 15, 2007
Pan Am Games: Highlights from Day 2
Associated Press
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — Highlights of Day 2 of the Pan American Games:MEDALS
The triathlon was a triumphant event for Americans, with Andy Potts of Princeton, N.J., and Julie Ertel of Placentia, Calif., taking gold medals. They both also earned berths for the United States at the Beijing Games, although the athletes themselves are not guaranteed those slots.
Sarah Haskins of St. Louis took silver in the women's event.
Jason Richardson, Mckee City, N.J., won the BMX cycling gold. Argentina's Gabriela Diaz was the women's winner. The road cycling gold went to Anne Samplonius of Canada.
The three-member equestrian team of Lauren Sammis (Wayne, N.J.), Katherine Poulin-Neff (Fairfield, Maine) and Christopher Hickey (Westhampton, Mass.) combined for top honors in the dressage team final.
The shooting range also was very profitable for the United States, with Jason Parker of Omaha, Neb., and Matt Rawlings, Wharton, Texas, finishing 1-2 in 10-meter air rifle. In women's 25-meter pistol, gold went to Sandra Ubtagrafft, Beverly Hills, Calif.
Amy Sowash of Richmond, Ky., was the silver medalist behind Cuba's Eglis Cruz in the 10-meter air rifle.
Earning the taekwondo women's title at 57 kilograms was Iridia Salazar of Mexico. Diogo Silva, Brazil, was the 68-kilo men's gold medalist.
In weightlifting, Yudelquis Contreras, Dominican Republic, won the women's 53-kilo class. The men's 69 kilos went to Yordanis Borrero of Cuba.
Canada's Ann Samplonius and Colombia's Santiago Botero were gold winners in the cycling road races.
Jose Luis Fuentes of Venezuela took the all-around gymnastics gold medal, followed by Colombia's Jorge Hugo Giraldo and Guillermo Alvarez of Denver. Fuentes won four of the six events.
Overall, the United States leads the medals chart with 20, 11 gold. Next is Venezuela with nine medals.
TEAMS
The U.S. women's volleyball team qualified for the four-team medals round by beating Puerto Rico 21-25, 25-18, 25-16, 25-22. The Americans (2-0) were tied at 13 in the second set when they rattled off a 7-1 run, with captain Danielle Scott-Arruda (Baton Rouge, La.) winning four of the points. From there, they took charge of the match.
Tayyiba Haneef-Park (Laguna Hills, Calif.) led 14 kills and 13 digs. Scott-Arruda added 11 kills.
The world champion women's water polo squad downed Cuba 14-6 as Natalia Golda of Fullerton, Calif., scored four times.
After a postponement of their opener on Saturday, the American men beat the Dominican Republic 5-1 in baseball. Tyson Ross of Oakland, Calif., went 6 2-3 innings for the victory. Logan Forsythe of Memphis, Tenn., had three of the United States' nine hits.
Cuba recovered from an opening loss to Panama and routed Mexico 8-1.
America's women's field hockey team won 4-1 over Netherlands Antilles behind a hat trick by Carrie Lingo of Rehoboth Beach, Del.
UPSET
Julian Illingworth of Portland, Ore., stunned top-seeded Shahier Razik of Canada in men's squash to earn a spot in the semifinals and guarantee himself at least a bronze medal. Illingworth, ranked 55th in the world, beat the No. 26 Razik 9-3, 9-6, 9-6.
"This was one of my best wins, especially since it was three games to zero," Illingworth said. "I
RIDING HIGH
After two rides for both the Americans and the Canadians in dressage, there was only a two-tenths of a point difference in the total scores deciding the team gold medal. The title came down to the scores for Christopher Hickey of Westhampton, Mass., and Canadian Andrea Bresee.
Hickey, aboard Regent, scored 69.150, which put the duo in second-place overall. Bresee
The United States earned two slots at the Beijing Olympics when Andy Potts of Princeton, N.J., and Julie Ertel of Placenita, Calif., both won in the Pan American Games triathlon. Neither Potts nor Ertel are guaranteed to be going to the 2008 Games, however.
STARS OF THE DAY
Andy Potts of Princeton, N.J., swam .9 miles, rode his bike 25 miles and ran 6 miles to win the triathlon in 1 hour, 52 minutes, 31 seconds, earning the United States a berth in the 2008 Olympics. Grabbing a women's berth for her country in Beijing was Julie Ertel of Placentia, Calif.
Carrie Lingo of Rehoboth Beach, Del., helped the U.S. women's field hockey team rally from an early deficit to beat Netherlands Antilles 4-1. Lingo scored in the 30th, 39th and 61st minutes.
QUOTES OF THE DAY
"You can't have a better place to compete in. To be in Copacabana, to see the Sugar Loaf (mountain) and the Redeemer (statue) is sensational." — Andy Potts of Princeton, N.J., who swam .9 miles, rode his bike 25 miles and ran 6 miles to win the triathlon and earn the United States a berth in the 2008 Olympics.
"We are pleased with the outcome through Day 2. I think, in particular, the sports we were really targeting on for Beijing qualification we are doing extremely well in. Earning those spots and country quotas for Beijing, that is a key part of our goals and objectives here in Rio.
"Our athletes are performing well and stepping up and doing well on foreign soil, and from our perspective it's a good sign with 13 months to go before Beijing." — Steve Roush, USOC chief of sport performance.
"I made a few little mistakes, and part of those were rider error . . . going for it a little too much," said Hickey. "But I
