London Olympics

Soldiers finish out of the medals to wrap up Army athletes' London action

By Kevin Lilley on August 11, 2012 Army, Olympics, Uncategorized

The last of the Army participants in the Summer Olympics wrapped up their events Saturday, finishing out of the medals one day before the end of the London Games. Spc. Dennis Bowsher took 32nd out of 36 athletes in the modern pentathlon, posting a score of 5324, more than 600 points off the gold medal-winning score posted by David Svoboda of the Czech Republic. It was the first Olympics to feature the event’s new format, in which the shooting and running portions are combined in a single, final event. Participants also compete in fencing, swimming and horseback riding, which didn’t…

Olympic update: Byers out in quarterfinal, Parker misses cut in 3-position rifle

By Kevin Lilley on August 6, 2012 Army, Shooting, Uncategorized

Two Army sergeants first class came up short of the Olympic podium in London on Monday — one on the wrestling mat, the other on the shooting range. Sgt. 1st Class Dremiel Byers, making his second trip to the Olympics, was knocked out in the quarterfinal round of the 120-kilogram Greco-Roman bracket, falling 1-0, 1-0 to Turkey’s Riza Kayaalp. Kayaalp went on to lose in the semifinals, which eliminated Byers from bronze medal consideration. It’s the second Olympic trip for Byers, who also reached the quarterfinals in Beijing. He won two matches in China to reach the round of eight,…

Army wife Jamie Gray golden in 3-position rifle

By Kevin Lilley on August 4, 2012 Army, Uncategorized

Jamie Gray, wife of Staff Sgt. Henry Gray of the Army Marksmanship Unit, broke the Olympic record for the 50-meter three-position rifle event Saturday, earning the third gold medal for U.S. shooters at the London games. Gray’s score of 691.9 bested the old mark of 690.3, set four years ago in Bejing by China’s Du Li. The American’s qualifying-round score of 592 also set an Olympic record, according to this USA Today report. Gray follows two U.S. skeet shooters to the top of the 2012 Olympic podium: Army Sgt. Vincent Hancock broke his own final and qualification records Tuesday in…

Fourth place for Air Force captain

By Karen Small on August 1, 2012 Air Force, Olympics

Seth Kelsey, the Air Force captain competing in his third Olympic Games, lost in overtime in the bronze medal match of men’s individual epee event. The score was 11-12, according to the London 2012 website. Kelsey lost to South Korean Jinsun Jung on Wednesday after a string of victories, including one over No. 1-seeded Nikolai Novosjolov of Estonia. In the bronze medal bout, Kelsey battled back to tie the match at 11, and then made a bold choice, according to The Gazette of Colorado Springs, Colo. “I’ve always been disappointed in my previous Olympic performances,” Kelsey said. “Today, I beat…

Kelsey to compete for Bronze

By Karen Small on August 1, 2012 Air Force, Olympics

Air Force Capt. Seth Kelsey lost his men’s epee semifinal match to Ruben Gascon of Venezuela, 5-6. Kelsey will compete for the Bronze medal later today against the loser of the semifinal match between Jinsun Jung of South Korea and Bartosz Piasecki of Norway, The Associated Press reports. According to The Washington Post, “Kelsey was crestfallen Wednesday after he lost in sudden death.” It was the lowest-scoring match of the Olympics thus far.

Air Force captain in fencing semifinals

By Karen Small on August 1, 2012 Air Force, Navy, Olympics, Uncategorized

Air Force Capt. Seth Kelsey reached the men’s epee semifinals at the Olympics in London today, the Associated Press reports. Kelsey is competing in his third Olympic Games. He was ousted quickly from the Athens Games in 2004 and the Beijing Games in 2008, but won his first-round bout today over China’s Li Guojie 8-7, AP reports. He then scored a huge upset by beating No. 1 seed and former world champion Nikolai Novosjolov of Estonia 15-11 in the round of 16. That put the 17th-seeded Kelsey into the quarterfinals, where he downed Venezuela’s Silvio Fernandez 15-9. The men’s epee…

Olympic shooting, Day 1: Army wife Jamie Gray 5th, Szarenski misses cut

By Kevin Lilley on July 28, 2012 Army, Uncategorized

The wife of an Army marksman came within two points of reaching the first medal podium of the London Olympics. Jamie Gray, wife of Staff Sgt. Henry Gray of the Army Marksmanship Unit, finished fifth in the women’s 10-meter air rifle event Saturday, posting a score of 499.7 over her qualifying and final rounds. China’s Yi Siling took the gold with a score of 502.9. Poland’s Sylwia Bogacka led after qualifying and ended up with the sliver, and China’s Yu Dan took bronze with a two-round score of 501.5. Get full results here. Gray, who took fourth in the air…

Olympic quick hits: Wrestlers take London, more on Marine boxer Herring, Army profiles

By Kevin Lilley on July 27, 2012 Army, Boxing, Marine Corps, Uncategorized, Wrestling

With opening ceremonies in London hours away, here are some last-minute links for a handful of military medal hopefuls. As competition begins, remember to check with our good friends at USA Today for all the up-to-the-minute results, military and otherwise. Herring honors daughter. As one of three team captains, Marine Sgt. Jamel Herring will lead the U.S. boxing team into competition in London. But his walk into the opening ceremonies will take a different kind of strength; as the New York Post reports, Herring’s infant daughter died exactly three years ago. Key quote: “I’ll think about her, but I also…

Army Olympians in brief: Meet John Nunn and Dennis Bowsher

By Kevin Lilley on July 10, 2012 Army, Uncategorized

After Action has told you about the soldier-wrestlers heading to London. And we’ve filled you in on the soldier and sailor shooters, too (so have our friends with Military Times OFFduty; check out Jon Anderson’s piece here). But with Olympic opening ceremonies closing in, it’s a good time to meet two more Army World Class Athlete Program members who’ll represent their service and country in London. For more on these and other WCAP members, visit the program’s official website. Name: Staff Sgt. John Nunn Event: 50-kilometer race walk Olympic experience: Second trip (competed in the 20-km race walk in Athens in…

Monday morning links: Spenser Mango in spotlight, Boise State-Big East questions, Dustin West results, another take on carrier homer derby

By Kevin Lilley on June 25, 2012 Army, Combatives, Football, Soccer

A half-dozen quick hits for a Monday morning (non-wrestling news after the jump): 1. Big time for the little guy. Army Sgt. Spenser Mango recently had his turn as the feature subject of “100 Olympic Hopefuls in 100 Days,” a series put together by our good friends at USA Today. Click over to read about the Greco-Roman Olympian’s path into the Army World Class Athlete Program, his Army duties when he’s not wrestling or training, and how much weight he has to cut to make the 55-kilogram (121-pound) limit. 2. Lester’s homecoming. Mango may have received the national press, but…

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