The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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Michigan Was Well-Represented At The London Olympics (And Maize) And Blue Red, White she took so much pride. Some of her best friends, fellow Olympic track and field athletes Jeff Porter, Tiffany Porter and Nick Willis, crowded alongside her. The quartet of track stars posed G eena Gall stood next to old friends, a beaming smile on her face as she grasped a corner of the flag in which BY ANDY REID in front of the massive statue of the legendary Olympic rings, just out- side the stadium where the world watched a parade of dramatic cer- emonies and athletic competitions. Gall and Jeff Porter had competed combined medals: eight gold, three silvers and a bronze. In swimming, Michigan sent for- for the United States, Tiffany Porter for England and Willis for his native New Zealand. Of course, it was a great honor to wear their countries' colors in front of a worldwide audi- ence and compete in the sport they loved. But the flag they held didn't have the Stars And Stripes or a Union Jack in the upper right corner. It was a simple navy blue flag, with a large, maize 'M' plastered over the middle. "Just having that bond with your mer student-athlete Tyler Clary, who won gold in the 200-meter backstroke; Peter Vanderkaay, who earned a bronze medal in the 400-me- ter freestyle; Derya Buyukuncu, who competed for Turkey in the 200-me- ter backstroke; and Charlie Houchin and Davis Tarwater, who each earned gold medals for swimming in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay heats for the victorious U.S. squad. And, of course, there is former Wolverine volunteer assistant coach Michael Phelps, who added to his legacy by winning six more medals, four gold and two silvers. Eight former Michigan track former teammates, as you grow older in this sport, is just amazing," Gall said. "It was pretty cool to experience that with them, and I can't thank my college teammates and coaches enough for getting me to where I am today. be Wolverines." A total of 18 athletes with ties to "Wherever we go, we will always the university competed in the 2012 London Olympic Games, winning 12 From left to right, Jeff Porter, Geena Gall, Tiffany Porter and Nick Willis were among 18 athletes with ties to U-M that competed in the London Olympic Games. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHELTIC MEDIA RELATIONS stars competed in the Olympics: Gall (800-meter run); the Porters (Jeff, 110-meter hurdles and Tiffany, 100-meter hurdles for England); Wil- lis (1,500-meter run for New Zea- land); Nate Brannen (1,500-meter run for Canada); Ciaran O'Lianaird (1,500-meter run for Ireland); Nicole Sifuentes (1,500-meter run for Can- ada); and Uhunoma Osazuwa (hep- tathlon for Nigeria). None of them took home a medal. The Wolverines also had former athletes in water polo (USA goalie Betsey Armstrong, whose team took home gold); women's basketball (Krista Phillips, who led Canada to the quarterfinals); men's gymnas- tics (Sam Mikulak, who competed for Team USA, and Syque Caesar, who competed for Bangladesh); and rowing (Team USA members Tom Peszek and Sarah Trowbidge and Team Canada member Janine Han- son, whose eight-rower boat won a silver medal). SEPTEMBER 2012 THE WOLVERINE 85