London 2012 Olympics: Today’s Olympics highlights

Published on 04/08/2012 03:17

IT’S judgment day for the ‘Face of the Games’ as Jessica Ennis guns for gold in the heptathlon at an expectant Olympic Stadium.

The Sheffield all-rounder got off to the best possible start with a record run in the 100m hurdles yesterday morning in front of a huge and raucous home crowd.

FACE TIME

JESSICA ENNIS HEPTATHLON

10:05, OLYMPIC STADIUM

Expect the roof to lift off the stadium if Ennis can secure what would surely be one of the most popular golds of the entire Games.

Today’s three events are the javelin, long jump and 800m. The two field events are not Ennis’s strongest but she is a formidable 800m so, if she is so much as in touch going into the final event, the atmosphere in the centrepiece stadium of the event should be electric.

BOLT TAKES STAGE

USAIN BOLT 100m

10:00, OLYMPIC STADIUM

IF Jessica Ennis is the home icon, then the international ‘Face of the Games’ is without doubt the sprinting phenomenon Usain Bolt. No medals will be handed out today but the 100m heats get under way in the morning and all eyes will be on Bolt’s condition after some concerns over his hamstring.

Of course it is not a one-man show, with Bolt’s team-mate Yohan Blake very much in the mix after beating his friend in the trials. Tyson Gay will be striving every sinew to somehow spoil the Jamaican party. British entrants Dwain Chambers and Adam Gemili will be hoping to safely negotiate the heats – reaching the final would be a result for the home duo.

KING KENNY

JASON KENNY MEN’S SPRINT

11:01, VELODROME

IT was a controversial decision to replace Team GB talisman Sir Chris Hoy with Jason Kenny, the 24-year-old from Bolton who was part of the team spring gold-medal winning trio in Beijing and followed that up with Thursday’s emotional triumph at the London Velodrome.

Hoy had tipped Kenny for a starring role at these Games four years ago when the youngster helped the Flying Scotsman to gold in Beijing. “He’s your man for London,” the gracious Scot said in the wake of that victory.

Kenny gets his men’s sprint heats under way today in the crackling atmosphere of the venue known as the ‘Pringle’, where Team GB have been absolutely on fire.

FLY MO

MO FARAH 10,000m

21:15, OLYMPIC STADIUM

MO Farah takes a shot at history tonight in the most gruelling single event on the track, the 25 laps that make up the 10,000m. As ever it will be the north Africans that present the biggest challenge to Farah in his bid to become the first British man to win the title.

The 5,000m world champion is counting on the deafening support of the home crowd to carry him to glory. “I don’t think it will come down to the last lap but if it does then it may depend on what the crowd can do,” he said. “I’ve definitely improved my speed over the last couple of years and just have to run my own race but it depends on how loud they are, that adrenalin. It makes a big difference.”

“I remember being at the MCG in Melbourne at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. That was my first big race and the crowd was going crazy because the Austrlian Craig Mottram racing.

“I was ninth in the race but I remember hearing the noise of the crowd.”

MOTHER’S PRIDE

EILISH McCOLGAN 3000m STEEPLECHASE

11:35, OLYMPIC STADIUM

A FAMILIAR name appears on the start list for the women’s 3,000m steeplechase – the heats of which start at 11.35am this morning.

Eilish McColgan is the daughter of former world champion and Seoul silver medallist Liz, who has coached her prodigious offspring to her debut Olympic Games.

The 21-year-old Dundonian’s build-up to the biggest moment of her life has not been as straight-forward as she might have liked. During the Team GB holding camp in Portugal she was hit by a car during a training run. Luckily, no real damage was done and the youngster will enter the Olympic stadium today with a genuine chance of reaching the final.

PSYCHO PATHS MEDAL ROUTE

STUART PEARCE FOOTBALL

19:30, MILLENNIUM STADIUM

GREAT Britain men’s footballers take on South Korea at the Millennium Stadium in the quarter-finals tonight knowing that victory will take them to the brink of a medal. GB coach Stuart Pearce believes being part of the Olympics has helped his side to avoid being burdened with the sort of expectations that have hampered England at major tournaments. He believes the sheer size of the Olympics and the number of sports taking place is benefiting his squad by allowing them to grow into the tournament without the full glare of the spotlight being upon them. “I think it has helped us,” he said. “There has been a level slant in the expectations on this team, it’s been good for us to keep our heads under the radar a bit.”