Here we go, Aleh, Aleh, Aleh
NEW Zealand’s Jewish sailor Jo Aleh has added to the country’s gold medal count, after she and sailing partner Olivia Powrie took out the women’s 470 class.
NEW Zealand’s Jewish sailor Jo Aleh has added to the country’s gold medal count, after she and sailing partner Olivia Powrie took out the women’s 470 class.
Aleh, who has family in New Zealand and Israel, and Powrie were able to sail away from their British rivals in the medal race to take gold.
“Yachting has been struggling for a while at home and it’s pretty awesome to bring back a gold medal,” an elated Aleh said after the race.
“It’s going to take a while to sink in. It is just another regatta, but I guess it is just so much more.”
The new Olympic champion – whose father lives on Moshav Yinon near Kiryat Malachi and whose mother served in the Israeli army – said she was amazed and slightly bemused at the media fanfare in Israel. “It feels great to know that there are even more people behind me and, given my parents’ background, part of my medal belongs to Israel,” she said.
After starring for Australia in the 400m event, gun sprinter Steven Solomon was at it again, this time in the 4x400m relay.
Solomon got the foursome off to a great start, but the other three athletes couldn’t keep the team in a qualifying spot, finishing just half-a-second away from a berth in the final.
Canadian long distance swimmer Richard Weinberger won bronze in the 10km marathon swim at Hyde Park, with the 22-year-old crossing the line in a time of 1:50.00.
The Israeli team will come away from London without a medal, the first time this has happened since judoka Yael Arad won the country’s first at the Barcelona Games in 1992.
The only medal that will make its way back to Israel will be the one in the hands of David Blatt, who coached the Russian basketball team to bronze.
Rhythmic gymnast Neta Rivkin performed extremely well in the individual event, earning a spot in the final, where she scored 109.000 after the four apparatus to finish a respectable seventh. American Julie Zetlin placed 22nd in the same event.
Israel’s rhythmic team also made it to the final, but could only manage eighth position with a total score of 53.400.
Marathon runner Zohar Zemiro crossed the line of the 42.2km run in 81st position in a time of 2:34.59 and was in need of medical assistance after the race.
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