Team USA Wins 4 Track & Field Medals, Including First Men's 1500m Medal In 44 Years

2012 Summer Olympics: Leo Manzano Takes Home Silver In Men's 1500m

The United States hadn't won a medal in the Men's 1500m since the 1968 Summer Games in Mexico City, but that near half a century dry run was snapped on Tuesday when American Leo Manzano won the silver medal. Manzano just barely missed out on the gold medal, finishing up just 0.71 seconds behind Algeria's Taoufik Makhloufi.

"If he deserves it, I guess it was up to the people," Manzano told the Associated Press. "I don't know what his objective was. He probably knew what it was, but I really don't know."

Coincidentally enough, Makhloufi had been expelled from the Olympics for not trying hard enough in the Men's 800m qualifying, but the Olympic Committee permitted him to return after a doctor backed up his claim of a knee injury. If not for Makloufi being reinstated, Manzano might have had a gold medal.

"At the end of the day, I was like, 'Whether he's in or out, I've still got to race,' " Manzano told Yahoo! Sports. "Of course, if he's not running, fine. It's a lot better for everybody else. But if he's running [or] not running, I can't do anything about that. It doesn't matter."

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub. For more on Olympic athletics, follow the 2012 Olympic athletics section.

It's A New Golden Age For American Distance Runners At London Olympics

Americans are -- surprise! -- winning medals on what is the best U.S. team in Olympic history.

Sally Pearson's Olympic Record In 100m Hurdles Highlights Tuesday's Track & Field Results

Tuesday was a big day for track and field at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, featuring a pair of historic achievements. Australia's Sally Pearson set an Olympic record in the women's 100-meter hurdles, posting a time of 12.35 seconds to take the gold, while Lolo Jones from the United States missed out on a medal with a fourth-place finish.

Meanwhile, in the men's 1,500m final, Algerian runner Taoufik Makhloufi won gold, just one day after being reinstated following a disqualification for a lack of effort in an 800m heat. Leo Manzano took silver in the 1500m, becoming the first American to medal in the event in 44 years.

In the video below, Dan Rubenstein of SB Nation Studios breaks down the day's track and field results for you, so take a look and get caught up on everything that happened on the track on Tuesday.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic athletics, follow the 2012 Olympic athletics section.

Leo Manzano Wins First U.S. Medal In Men's 1500m In 44 Years

Leo Manzano of Team USA got a silver medal in the men's 1500 meters at the 2012 Olympics on Tuesday. And, in doing so, he stopped a streak of futility for the U.S. in the event that lasted nearly a half-century.

Manzano, who placed second to Algeria's Taoufik Makhloufi (3:34.08 seconds) in the event, ran his fastest time of the year in the event for silver, and became the first American man to win a medal in the 1500m since Jim Ryun, the first American to run the mile in less than four minutes. Ryun's silver medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City was the last silver and last medal for a Team USA member in the event.

And the U.S. missed breaking an even longer streak by the .04 seconds that bronze medalist Abdalaati Iguider of Morocco beat fourth-place finisher American Matt Centrowitz by: the U.S. hasn't won two medals in the 1500 meters in one Olympics since 1912.

Makhloufi's gold was the first for an Algerian in the event since 1996.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub. For more on Olympic athletics, follow the 2012 Olympic athletics section.

Sally Pearson Wins Women's 100m Hurdles, Americans Finish 2-3-4

In a photo finish, Australia's Sally Pearson won gold in the women's 100-meter hurdles, setting an Olympic record with a time of 12.35 seconds. Pearson narrowly edged Team USA's Dawn Harper, the defending gold medalist, who was officially just 0.02 slower.

The bronze medal also went to the United States, with Kellie Wells finishing in 12.48. Lolo Jones -- looking to make up for a disappointing performance at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, when she stumbled over the second-to-last hurdle -- finished in fourth place (12.58), missing a medal by just 0.11 seconds. Only three-tenths of a second separated the top six finishers.

(Photo by Omega via Getty Images)

For Pearson, the continues her recent domination of the event -- she adds Olympic gold to her already long list of accomplishments in the 100m hurdles, which includes a silver in Beijing and a world championship in 2011.

Harper, the bronze medalist at last year's IAAF World Championships, led for much of the race, but Pearson drew even with around 30 meters to go, then pulled ahead over so slightly after the final hurdle and managed to out-lunge Harper at the line. Harper's time of 12.37 seconds is not only the fastest losing time at the Olympic Games -- it's the fastest second-place finish ever.

After nearly missing out on qualifying for the finals, Jones turned in her fastest time of the season, 12.58 seconds.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub.

Team USA's Erik Kynard Wins Silver Medal In Men's High Jump

Erik Kynard had his chances to win the men's high jump on Tuesday at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. But Russia's Ivan Ukhov kept raising the bar, literally, and forced the American to settle for silver.

Kynard was first to clear 2.33 meters in the men's high jump, but Ukhov topped that twice, at 2.36 and 2.38 meters, and Kynard could not clear the bar at either of those heights or at 2.40 meters.

Ukhov's medal is the third Russian gold in the event in the last four Olympiads. Kynard's is the first American medal since 2004, when Matt Hemingway took silver.

Three bronze medals were awarded in the event, to Qatar's Mutaz Essa Barshim, Canada's Derek Drouin and Great Britain's Robert Grabarz. All three cleared 2.29 meters and failed just three times in the competition, all at the 2.33-meter height.

Three other competitors cleared the 2.29-meter height, including the U.S.'s Jamie Nieto, but had more failures.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub. For more on Olympic athletics, follow the 2012 Olympic athletics section.

Men's Discus Throw: Germany's Robert Harting Wins Gold Medal

Robert Harting of Germany gave his country its sixth gold medal with a throw of 68.27 meters in the men's discus final Tuesday afternoon at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The toss came on his fifth of six throws, besting Iran's Ehsan Hadadi (68.18 meters) and Estonia's Gerd Kanter (68.03 meters).

Hadadi gave Iran its eighth medal at the this year's Olympics and Kanter gave Estonia its second. Harting galloped around the Olympic oval after winning the event, hugging friends and family in the stands.

No Americans qualified for the final field of 12 throwers. Jason Young (62.18 meters), Lance Brooks (61.17 meters) and Jarred Rome (59.57 meters) were all eliminated during qualifying. Germany put two men in the final. Martin Wierig finished in sixth place with a throw of 65.86 meters.

You can find a complete medal tracker at SI.com.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub.

Dawn Harper, Lolo Jones Qualify For 100m Hurdles Finals

Lolo Jones posted the second-slowest qualifying time in the women's 100-meter hurdles semifinals Tuesday to advance to the finals at 4:00 p.m. ET later in the afternoon. Joining her will be two more Americans: Dawn Harper and Kellie Wells.

Jones finished third in her heat with a time of 12.71 seconds, forcing her to qualify on time. Harper, the defending gold medalist in the event, and Wells took easier routes to qualification by winning their heats outright. Harper won her heat with a personal best of 12.46 seconds. Wells posted a seasonal best of 12.51 seconds.

Australia's Sally Pearson posted the fastest time of the three heats, finishing in 12.39 seconds. Filling out the rest of the eight-runner field will be Turkey's Nevin Yanit (12.58 seconds), Canadians Jessica Zelinka (12.66) and Phylicia George (12.65), and Austria's Beat Schrott (12.83).

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub.

Watch London Olympics 2012 Online: Schedule For Tuesday's Track & Field Evening Session

The afternoon schedule for track and field Tuesday at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London features four more medal events. The men's high jump final will start things off at 2:00 p.m. ET. The event features three Americans: Erik Kynard, Jesse Williams and Jamie Nieto.

The semifinals for the women's 100-meter hurdles begin at 2:15 p.m. ET. The United States will be represented by an American in each of the three heats. Dawn Harper, Lolo Jones and Kellie Wells all hope to advance to the finals at 4:00 p.m. At 3:25 p.m., Carmelita Jeter, Allyson Felix and Sanya Richard-Ross take on the semifinals in the women's 200-meter semifinals.

Here are the rest of the highlights from the afternoon schedule:

• 2:00 p.m. - Men's High Jump Final
• 2:15 p.m. - Women's 100m Hurdles Semifinals
• 2:45 p.m. - Men's Discus Throw Final
• 3:25 p.m. - Women's 200m Semifinals
• 4:00 p.m. - Women's 100m Hurdles Semifinals
• 4:15 p.m. - Men's 1500m Final

Those looking to catch the action live will once again have to tune into NBC Live Extra on their respective internet-ready devices. Otherwise, you will have to wait until primetime on NBC for television coverage.

China's Liu Xiang May Have Torn Achilles, Could Retire

China's Liu Xiang went into the 110m hurdles looking for redemption for an injury withdrawal in the event in 2008, when he was the defending Olympic champion. Alas, he he suffered another injury on this stumble over the first hurdle in the first qualifying round.

In case that crash doesn't look horrific enough for you, here it is from the side angle, where you can see Liu crumple to the ground.

Liu was forced to hobble to the finish — though he officially earned a DNF for the heat — and was helped off the track in a wheelchair. Chinese track coach Feng Shuyong thinks Liu may have torn his Achilles tendon. But Feng is not sure whether the injury will mean retirement for his star:

"It is hard to say. Lots of athletes get injured and come back. It depends on many factors. I hope all the fans can understand this and that anything can happen. It happens to many athletes."

Liu took gold in the 110m hurdles in Athens at the age of 21, but if he is to return for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he will be 33 at the time of competition.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics Hub. For more on Olympic athletics, follow the 2012 Olympic athletics section.

110m Hurdles: Liu Xiang Crashes In Round 1, Aries Merritt Leads All Qualifiers

For the second straight Olympics, China's track hero, Liu Xiang, failed to even finish his qualifying heat in the 110 meter hurdles, while the United States' Aries Merritt was the fastest qualifier by more than a tenth of a second.

Liu crashed into the first hurdle in his heat and crumpled to the track, eventually hopping off the track before other competitors helped him into a wheelchair. For the second straight Olympics, he failed to clear a single hurdle: Liu won the 2004 gold medal -- the first men's track and field medal in Chinese history, which managed to come in a premier event -- and at one point held the world record in the event, making him one of the faces for China's delegation at the 2008 games in Beijing. But he had to withdraw from the heats in 2008 due to an undisclosed Achilles injury. Again, he's suffered injury at an unfortunate time.

Merritt had a more successful run, finishing his heat in 13.07 seconds, .16 off his personal best and .14 faster than the closest competitor in any heat. With Liu out of the running, Merritt and Cuba's Dayron Robles are the two main competitors for gold. Two other Americans, Jeff Porter and Jason Richardson, qualified for semis.

The semifinals are Wednesday at 2:15 p.m. Eastern, followed by the finals two hours later.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub.

Men's 200m: Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake Jog Into Semifinals

Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake are turning looking bored while running insanely fast into an art form. The pair easily qualified for the semifinals in the men's 200 meter. Also qualifying were all three Americans taking place in Round 1 of heats, including Wallace Spearmon.

The 200m is the second of three events for Blake and Bolt, and another race in which they are expected to finish with gold and silver medals, with most of the drama coming in wondering which Jamaican sprinter will bring home the top spot. While their races are intensely exciting, their heats are about 150 meters of sprinting and 50 of taking it easy, which is a pretty entertaining show of skill in its own right. Each runner finished first in his heat despite races more than a second worse than their personal bests.

Spearmon represents America's best shot at medaling: he ran the third-fastest time in Beijing and expected to claim a bronze medal but was disqualified for accidentally stepping into the lane of a fellow competitor on the turn. He finished second in his heat with a time of 20.47, but can do better. Maurice Mitchell won his heat with a time of 20.54, while Isiah Young was the third and last to qualify from his heat with a time of 20.55.

The semifinals are Wednesday at 3:10 p.m. Eastern, with the finals taking place on Thursday at 3:55 p.m.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub.

Track & Field: Event Schedule, TV Coverage For Tuesday

Tuesday's track and field schedule includes the women's 100m final and men's 1500m final, among other events.