American women have earned medals in swimming, shooting, and weightlifting at the Sydney Olympics to date. Highlights from this weekend’s competitions include the major victory for the U.S. Women’s Swimming Team, grabbing the Gold Medal in the 4X100 m Free Relay and breaking a world record. Teammates Jenny Thompson, Amy Van Dyken, Dara Torres, and Courtney Sheely won the race in three minutes–36.61 seconds faster than the 1994 world record set by China. Torres, 33 and returning to the Olympics after a seven-year retirement, also earned the Bronze Medal in the Women’s 100 m Butterfly.
Tara Nott, former U.S. Olympic soccer player and gymnast, won a Silver Medal in the Women’s 48 kg Weightlifting competition. She began training for weightlifting in 1996. The 2000 games marks the first time that women have competed in this sport. Nott’s medal is the first U.S. weightlifting medal since 1984.
