The Unofficial 2008 Beijing Olympics Blog

World records are the salt and pepper of every event (in which setting a record is possible). The best of the best make their way into a very small list, where only ‘la creme de la creme’ can get. They are the ones who will be remembered years from now, they are the ones who will inspire new generations and will remain in the history books.

Record(s): Most gold medals in a single Olympic event/Most world records set in an Olympic event
Current Record Holder: Mark Spitz
Challenger: Michael Phelps

Michael Phelps is without a doubt today’s greatest swimmer, and might just be the best swimmer all time. Born in 1985, he still has a whole lot of time to win more medals and set more records. In the 2004 Summer Olympics he won 6 gold medals, with 7 being the current record. He also won a silver and bronze medal, which definitely gives hope for more this year. He also has world records in several events.

Record: 100 metres men (9.72)
Current Record Holder: Usain Bolt
Challenger: Usain Bolt

His amazing performance has granted him a worthy nickname: The Lightning Bolt. His amazing form makes him the no. 1 candidate for the Olympic title this year (despite fierce competition), and everybody is watching him to see if he can go under the historic mark of 9.70 - which would be an amazing performance.

Record: The biggest time distance between 2 olympic gold medals won
Challenger: Mark Todd

Mark Todd is a member of New Zeeland’s delegation, participating in the equestrian events. Todd was voted the International Equestrian Federation’s Rider of the 20th Century and won his last gold medal in 1988 (20 years ago). His inclusion in this year’s delegation makes New Zeeland a strong candidate for a gold medal, as they hope the 52 year old will give them the edge they need.

Record: Most people watching

This is really hard to measure, but this year’s advertising seems to be way ahead of the previous editions and more and more people have showed interest aimed at the Olympic games.

Record: Most world records broken

This year sportsmen seem to have outdone themselves, especially in athletic challenges and swimming. If we were naming just Michael Phelps and Natalie Coughlin we would probably have about 10 world records broken. Coughlin is already considered to be the best American female swimmer ever, and extremely versatile - just as her delegation colleague is. Weightlifters seem to be doing really great too and Yelena Isinbayeva is just on fire. Also, there are more disciplines today than there were say 20 years ago.

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