Sunday’s coverage of the Olympics brought multiple contenders for Stud of the Day, as usual. Would it be U.S. gymnast Nastia Liukin, who fell on her dismount from the bars but had a routine that badass that she still made it into the individual finals of the event? Or maybe Bob Costas, who grilled President Bush about America’s relationship with China, then asked him if he was going to any more events before he left Beijing: "I’m going to swimming here, if you’d ever let me off this set…" the president joked. "You are dismissed," Costas said. (How many congratulatory text messages do you think Costas received after uttering that sentence?)
Of course, neither Liukin nor Costas could compete with Jason Lezak, who swam the fastest split in 4X100M freestyle relay history to keep Michael Phelps’ hope of winning eight gold medals at the games alive. (Pictured left to right are Cullen Jones, Lezak, Phelps, and Garrett Weber-Gale.) I just watched the race, a new world record, for the fifth time and got chills as Lezak, the U.S. anchor, chased down France’s Alain Bernard in the final seconds. Bernard, you’ll recall, is the Frenchman who’d been quoted as saying, "The Americans? We’re going to smash them. That’s what we came here for." (If anyone’s interested in quoting me watching that race live on my couch, I actually yelled "USA!" in a moment of intense patriotism. Then I screamed something like "Suck it!" in a moment of extreme unsportsmanlike conduct.*)
Nominate your own Olympic Stud of the Day** — or second ours — below. (And click here to check out our winning Studs from the previous two days in Beijing.)
* To make up for that, I will point out that Bernard finished first in NBCOlympics.com’s Ab Fab: Guess the Swimmer gallery.
** Not just a man or woman who turns us on. (Necessarily.)
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thanks for admitting that you’re a typical “ugly american”. Yelling “suck it”…it makes me so proud to be from the U.S.
I second it. That was one of the most amazing Olympic moments ever.
I’m surprised my neighbors didn’t check on me after I let out my own, Micheal-Phelps-esque primal scream when Lezak touched the wall first! The most exciting Olympics moment I’ve ever watched — I mean, the FIFTH place Swedish team beat the previous World Record and DIDN’T EVEN MEDAL!
Every American should watch that race….I doubt I’ve ever been more proud of our American athletes than I was as Lezak stalked down Bernard with simply super-human speed.
i watched that race last night, too, and I was jumping up and down yelling a more moderate “GO! GO! GO!” It was truly amazing! However, the four of them deserve to be the Olympic STUDS of the day (and STUDS of the entire OLYMPICS!)
Personally, I wholeheartedly second your “Suck it!!!” (though I personally went with “BURRRRRN!!”, Michael Kelso-style). Any time smack is talked like that at the Olympics (inappropriate, IMO), and then karma takes a big chomping bite out of the smack-talkers a$$? Is just a fun day. Plus: Most amazing end of a relay EVER. Jason Lezak is my God now!!! (tm Kathy Griffith)
Definitely Lezak. I jumped up from my couch too! Never done that for an Olympic event before. Now, I’m like Natalie from SportsNight and feeling a little woozy: I’ve got Olympic fever, baby!
I think his teammates could get their own reward for their cheering/shouting when they saw they won. I started giggling like a little school girl when I saw Phelps just yelling, arms open. That was CRAZY.
Second Lezak! I would like to thank Michael Phelps for lowering the top half of his suit before cheering for Lezak and celebrating their win. Incredible!
Did we HAVE to mike Michael Phelps’ mom? Seriously NBC, I really didn’t think you could ruin the Olympics for me anymore than you have over the last 3 or 4 olympiads, but that very well be the last straw.
Big WHOO HOO for Lezak! I love watching relays when that happens. Saw one in college – tremendous!
Was anyone else worried that Michael Phelps swimsuit was riding danerously low during his celebration? I was cocerned we would have a Janet Jackson. Not that I am complaining. Swimmers are hot!
Lezak was awesome, but so was Cullen Jones, who earned his keep by swimming the prelim that Phelps and Lezak weren’t even in, and helped set a world record. He is definitely a hottie too
I yelled ’suck it!’ at the tv too. It’s all in good fun. I also think I described the race to a friend as “Lezak rocked it” – I never use that term, but there’s not alot that describes what he did. Definitely a stud.
To Laurie: Worried is not the word I had in mind!
It was indeed a good battle…and I’m Canadian!!!
Lezak has been a part of the US team winning relays and breaking records for a while now. I’m glad he’s getting some well-deserved recognition.
Good pick! I high-fived my partner after that race. It was so intense! If Phelps does win 8 golds, he owes a huge debt to Lezak, for sure.
Correction…double-high-fived. LOL We looked so butch!
Wow, what an exciting night! A world record breaking race, an international in your face smack down and four All-American physically ripped hotties in a fight for the gold. You bet I was like every proud American cheering thier heart out while watching that race. I even had my own moment of celebratory smack, but it was something like “chew on that you snail eating frogs!”. The last thing I have to say is I think Phelps cheering is the best I have ever seen and will be noted as one of the best in olympic history.
What an amazing few days! It seems like World Records are being broken at almost every event. When Jason was on that last 50 I dont think I took a breath until I jumped up off my couch screaming. I can think of no other athletic event that turns me into a constant couch potato for 2 weeks. Thanks Olympics for making me a fat ass.
That race was amazing!! I was jumping up and down in my pjs screaming and yelling so loud that my cats ran for cover. And as much as Jason Lezak was the hero of the race, my heart soared with Michael Phelps half naked getting all excited, flexing his muscles and yelling like a warrior after winning. It was awesome to watch. so cliche and shallow of me I know. Then at the medal ceremony he was the first off the podium to congratulate the French on their silver medals. So even after all the french trash talk he still displayed sportsmanlike conduct. ah, sigh….
Totally agree. An amazing race and an amazing swim for Lezak. Have to give props to Eamon Sullivan of Australia for taking the whole field out in world record pace and claiming the 100M Free world record at the same time. Amazing!
Hey Snicks…
SUCK IT!! lol.
Yes yes yes! to everything you all are saying! but can I add one more thing? …. how about that Chris Collingworth ( I think that is his name ) the sport reporter guy that is always with Costas on the set. How into the games he is!! That is what is what was missing from the O’s before … a guy that actually is enjoying the games!! and showing it.
Just like everyone else, I was up and screaming as well. I was a swimmer and I know what it is like to swim the that relay. You are so pumped up, adreline screaming through you veins, you swim your butt off. One other thing, France’s Alain Bernard went out to fast and tied up the last 5 meters. If that hadn’t happened, we would have lost. I learned that when I was a swimmer.
I did not watch the race last night. After reading Popwatch, I went on a quest to find the entire race. Read the smack talk (France! You know that is not smart! We are Americans (and you saw what happened when we did it at Sydney-oh the shame. And come on, you ARE France.) Found the entire race (commentators were Chinese). Now, I know what happens. Comments are in Chinese. I am at work. And I still jump up and down in my seat. And I still yelled “Smash that, b*tches-yeah yeah yeah” complete with fist pumps (Freely Admit to my “ugly Americanism”). Awesome. Just awesome. And I second the thank you to Phelps for adjusting his swimsuit.
Typical ugly Americans, disrespecting and dissing your own president. Whether you agree or not with your own president is not the issue. The issue is a lack of respect in the way he cavalierly “dismisses” his interviewee. Amazingly, the author of this piece agrees with him! Costas is an obnoxious piece of turd. So are you if you congratulated him for his crass behaviour.
You can’t even respect your own. And you wonder why the world thinks you Americans are a bunch of d*uchebags…
WELL DONE to the relay team. An epic race awesomely swam.
Dude, does anyone here actually believe that “swim or die” is non-American?
Second Lezack! Best race EVER. Guilty of jumping on the couch Tom-Cruise-on-Oprah-style, cheering. Cried watching them celebrate, and again when they got their medals. Simply amazing. Have watched the race again online three times at work today. I can’t get enough of watching it. Hopefully they will show it again tonight in early highlights so my BF can see it. The whole team – STUDS ALL.
Lezak all the way! I screamed so loud last night when they won. Moments like that are why I watch the Olympics.
Bob Costas’s interview was so disgustingly inappropriate it was sad. If it was anyone else from NBC it would have been fine(like Matt Lauer), but instead you have a sports guy asking political questions, when the president obviously thought he was just there to talk about Team USA.
Boo Bob Costas.
And seriously I love the mens 4X100 team and want to have their babies
cut out the bush smack talk. he deserves props for even being there and supporting our country with such enthusiasm. i may be a republican but this is about so much more than politics. so cut it, be an american supporter you jackass.
with that being said i cheered like a 14 year old at a…jonas brothers (right?) concert. Most amazing olympic moment since Kerri Strug. This one is not likely to be topped though.
Go America.