FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
LONDON, Aug. 9, 2012 – Air Force family member Janay DeLoach leaped 6.89 meters last night at Olympic Stadium here to take the bronze medal in women’s long jump at the Summer Olympics.
USA teammate Brittney Reese won the gold with a jump of 7.12 meters, and Russia’s Elena Sokolova earned the silver with a jump of 7.07.
DeLoach said Reese motivates her to improve and provides advice. "She helps me get on the board," DeLoach said of her first-place teammate.
Reese isn’t her only supporter, though.
"My dad’s here with me, cheering me on," DeLoach said. "He’s been there the whole way through. … He’s always supported me in all my endeavors."
Her father is retired Air Force Chief Master Sgt. William DeLoach, whose last assignment was at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. He now works as a contractor there with the 416th Flight Test Squadron.
His daughter began competing in long jump at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, at age 13.
"I didn’t get too many meets in, but you know, it set the stage for where I am now," DeLoach said of competing in track and field at Ben Eielson High School.
She went on to compete in track and field at Colorado State University, but said she didn’t really get serious about long jumping until last year.
"That was the year that I won indoors," said the 26-year-old, 5-foot-5-inch athlete. DeLoach won the World Indoor Championship last year with a jump of 6.99 meters.
At the Olympic track and field trials in Eugene, Ore. five weeks ago, DeLoach earned the No. 3 spot on the USA team with a jump of 7.03 meters.
At the long-jump finals here, DeLoach was in third place early with her first attempt of 6.77 meters. Then the second jump for Brittney Reese of the United States put her in first place with a 7.12-meter leap. This dropped DeLoach to fourth place.
After three jumps, DeLoach remained in fourth place, with her longest jump still the initial 6.77 meters. But it was enough to put her in the top eight and give her an opportunity for three more attempts.
On her fourth jump, DeLoach leaped 6.74 meters, still just short of her first attempt and still in fourth place. On her fifth attempt, however, DeLoach soared through the air for a jump of 6.89 meters. She got up out of the sand pit with a smile.
After judges registered the distance, DeLoach realized she was one centimeter in front of Latvia’s Ineta Radevica for the bronze. The Latvian had jumped 6.88 meters on her first try in the finals.
On her final attempt, Redevica flew across the sand and planted her feet close to DeLoach’s best of the day. But judges measured it at 6.79 meters, 10 centimeters short of the bronze.
"Oh I was crumbling," DeLoach said. "I was like, ‘Please God, let me have this bronze medal.’ I knew she could do it, but it just didn’t happen at this point. … I inched her out by just a centimeter."
Then Russia’s Anna Nazorova made her last attempt, again looking close to the mark DeLoach set. But the jump was measured at 6.62 and DeLoach threw her hands up in joy, realizing she had the bronze medal.
Showing posts with label 2012 OLYMPICS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2012 OLYMPICS. Show all posts
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
JAMIE GRAY WINS GOLD IN WOMEN'S RIFLE EVENT
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSEGray Earns Olympic Gold in 3-positions RifleBy Tim Hipps
Army News Service
LONDON, Aug. 6, 2012 - Jamie Gray, wife of U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit shooter Staff Sgt. Hank Gray, won an Olympic gold medal in the women's 50-meter rifle 3-positions event Aug. 4 at the Royal Artillery Barracks here.
U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program rifle coach Maj. Dave Johnson, who leads Team USA's rifle shooters in London, coached Gray to the victory.
Gray established Olympic records in the qualification (592) and final (691.9) portions of the event, which includes shooting from prone, standing and kneeling positions.
On the next-to-last shot of the final round, Gray recorded her worst score (8.9) of the day, but she closed with her best shot (10.8) of the finale to seal the victory with a flourish.
"It was almost a little bit of relief, honestly," said Gray, 28, of Phenix City, Ala. "I've dreaded that last shot for four years, and it's amazing to have it come through and be a good shot.
"It looked good and it felt good, so it was awesome," she added. "After shooting an 8.9 on the next-to-last shot, you want to come back from that one, and that's what I did."
Serbia's Ivana Maksimovic (687.5) claimed the silver medal, and Czech Republic's Adela Sykorova (683) took the bronze.
Gray said she realized she could secure the gold after shooting 198 in standing. She opened with a 198 in prone, and finished with a 196 kneeling.
"After I shot a 198 standing, I was like, 'OK, here we go. This is a good one,'" she said. "The kneeling was probably the hardest thing I've ever shot -- 20 shots kneeling -- and I got through it great. I can't ask for a better kneeling today. It was windy, and I had one bad shot that just got away from me in the wind.
"Other than that," Gray continued, "I took just great shots. Every shot was a good shot. After that, I knew that's a big one and I have a chance at this."
Army News Service
LONDON, Aug. 6, 2012 - Jamie Gray, wife of U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit shooter Staff Sgt. Hank Gray, won an Olympic gold medal in the women's 50-meter rifle 3-positions event Aug. 4 at the Royal Artillery Barracks here.
U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program rifle coach Maj. Dave Johnson, who leads Team USA's rifle shooters in London, coached Gray to the victory.
Gray established Olympic records in the qualification (592) and final (691.9) portions of the event, which includes shooting from prone, standing and kneeling positions.
On the next-to-last shot of the final round, Gray recorded her worst score (8.9) of the day, but she closed with her best shot (10.8) of the finale to seal the victory with a flourish.
"It was almost a little bit of relief, honestly," said Gray, 28, of Phenix City, Ala. "I've dreaded that last shot for four years, and it's amazing to have it come through and be a good shot.
"It looked good and it felt good, so it was awesome," she added. "After shooting an 8.9 on the next-to-last shot, you want to come back from that one, and that's what I did."
Serbia's Ivana Maksimovic (687.5) claimed the silver medal, and Czech Republic's Adela Sykorova (683) took the bronze.
Gray said she realized she could secure the gold after shooting 198 in standing. She opened with a 198 in prone, and finished with a 196 kneeling.
"After I shot a 198 standing, I was like, 'OK, here we go. This is a good one,'" she said. "The kneeling was probably the hardest thing I've ever shot -- 20 shots kneeling -- and I got through it great. I can't ask for a better kneeling today. It was windy, and I had one bad shot that just got away from me in the wind.
"Other than that," Gray continued, "I took just great shots. Every shot was a good shot. After that, I knew that's a big one and I have a chance at this."
Monday, August 6, 2012
VA EMPLOYEE AND OLYMPIC BRONZE MEDAL WINNER SHARES STORY
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
The Olympics are filled with inspirational stories that bring the country together in celebration of exceptional accomplishment and national pride. And we at VA are very proud to share an inspiring story from one of our own, Natalie Dell—a Bronze Medal winner at the Summer Olympics.
Natalie conducts mental health research at the VA Medical Center in Bedford, Massachusetts. Every day, she studies how to help Veterans with depression and mental health issues. “I came in contact with Veterans every day,” she said in a VA interview this week. “Part of my job would be…to get a little more in-depth information on how exactly VA can help them.”
Beyond caring for Veterans, her other passion is rowing, a passion so developed that it led Natalie to compete in the 30th Olympiad in London, winning bronze for Team USA this week with her team in women’s quadruple sculls, which ended a 28 year medal drought in the sport.
And this is where Natalie’s success story gets truly inspiring. Growing up in a working class family, Natalie did not start rowing until her undergraduate years at Penn State University in an unfunded rowing club. Unlike her Ivy-league counterparts, she said, “I was not fast enough. I wasn’t even close to being fast enough to make the national team,” after graduation. Natalie realized that to make the team she would have to put in long hours of training, while also balancing a professional career. A professor suggested she try applying at VA as a research scientist, where she eventually landed a job caring for Veterans.
As a VA employee, Natalie attributes part of her rowing successes to the flexibility VA provided her. “I had to find a job that would allow me to have a really fulfilling professional career,” she said, “but also be flexible enough that I could train.” During her first year at the VA Medical Center, Natalie would wake up at 4:30 each morning to train, commute to her nine-to-five job, and then continue training in the evenings. Her work at VA taught her the importance of detail, which she brings to her rowing. “I try to be thorough with every stroke I take and I try to approach [rowing] with the same mindset I [use in my research].”After a year of intense training, the support of co-workers, and the will to keep going, Natalie was invited to the national team in 2010.
Natalie told us she draws inspiration every day from the Veterans she works with whose sacrifices for country humble and motivate us all. She has dedicated her career to helping America’s Veterans get their lives back when they return home from war. And her training has reaffirmed the importance of teamwork and community.
“I know that a lot of our Veterans face challenges in and out of the line of duty, where things just seem like they’re not going to happen, it does not seem possible,” Natalie said. But regardless of the situation, Natalie advises Veterans to never underestimate the power of support from those around you. “You may not realize it, but it can take you a really long way.”
The Olympics are filled with inspirational stories that bring the country together in celebration of exceptional accomplishment and national pride. And we at VA are very proud to share an inspiring story from one of our own, Natalie Dell—a Bronze Medal winner at the Summer Olympics.
Natalie conducts mental health research at the VA Medical Center in Bedford, Massachusetts. Every day, she studies how to help Veterans with depression and mental health issues. “I came in contact with Veterans every day,” she said in a VA interview this week. “Part of my job would be…to get a little more in-depth information on how exactly VA can help them.”
Beyond caring for Veterans, her other passion is rowing, a passion so developed that it led Natalie to compete in the 30th Olympiad in London, winning bronze for Team USA this week with her team in women’s quadruple sculls, which ended a 28 year medal drought in the sport.
And this is where Natalie’s success story gets truly inspiring. Growing up in a working class family, Natalie did not start rowing until her undergraduate years at Penn State University in an unfunded rowing club. Unlike her Ivy-league counterparts, she said, “I was not fast enough. I wasn’t even close to being fast enough to make the national team,” after graduation. Natalie realized that to make the team she would have to put in long hours of training, while also balancing a professional career. A professor suggested she try applying at VA as a research scientist, where she eventually landed a job caring for Veterans.
As a VA employee, Natalie attributes part of her rowing successes to the flexibility VA provided her. “I had to find a job that would allow me to have a really fulfilling professional career,” she said, “but also be flexible enough that I could train.” During her first year at the VA Medical Center, Natalie would wake up at 4:30 each morning to train, commute to her nine-to-five job, and then continue training in the evenings. Her work at VA taught her the importance of detail, which she brings to her rowing. “I try to be thorough with every stroke I take and I try to approach [rowing] with the same mindset I [use in my research].”After a year of intense training, the support of co-workers, and the will to keep going, Natalie was invited to the national team in 2010.
Natalie told us she draws inspiration every day from the Veterans she works with whose sacrifices for country humble and motivate us all. She has dedicated her career to helping America’s Veterans get their lives back when they return home from war. And her training has reaffirmed the importance of teamwork and community.
“I know that a lot of our Veterans face challenges in and out of the line of duty, where things just seem like they’re not going to happen, it does not seem possible,” Natalie said. But regardless of the situation, Natalie advises Veterans to never underestimate the power of support from those around you. “You may not realize it, but it can take you a really long way.”
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