Games full of golden moments

Inter Lake editorial

Everyone knew there would be plenty of drama at this year's Olympics, but the good news is that so far most of the drama has been in the competitions.

Beijing has suffered a few blips, from the tragic (an American man was killed in a knife attack) to the twisted (China went Hollywood during the opening ceremony and used lip-synching to cover up a little girl's buck teeth), but for the most part it's been business as usual behind the scenes.

But on the field of play, there have been some extraordinary moments which remind us why this competition is so popular. First and foremost, of course, has been the individual effort of Michael Phelps, the American swimmer who is now being called the greatest Olympic athlete of the modern era.

On Wednesday, Phelps won his 10th and 11th career gold medals, putting him ahead of several athletes who had previously won as many as nine.

That also made Phelps 5-for-5 in this year's Olympics, winning five gold medals in five events so far. Adding to his stature is the fact that he set world records in each event he has won in Beijing.

And he's not done yet. On Friday in Beijing (Thursday in the United States) Phelps will swim in two more events, with a final event still to come. Should he win gold in all eight of his events this year, he will also surpass Mark Spitz's remarkable record of seven gold medals in one Olympics.

Along the way, it should be noted, Phelps got two of his gold medals by participating in relay races, where he had great help from his fellow Americans. Both races were remarkable in their own way. In the 4x100 meter relay, Phelps depended on a stunning last leg by Jason Lezak, who came from behind in an almost impossible burst of speed. And in the 4x200 relay, Phelps and his teammates were so far ahead of the field that it almost looked like they would lap them. The new world-record time of 6:58.56 cut more than four seconds off the old mark, also held by the same team.

There have been other success stories at the Olympics as well, including the stellar medal performance of the Chinese athletes at their home games and many stories of personal accomplishment.

And the games are not even half over yet! So stay tuned. What's on TV now is much better than whatever the networks will be dishing out in September when the fall schedules are unveiled.