moment and after much advanced warning we will update you on another history making day here, and a momentous day for team usa in two of the big signature sports of these summer games, gymnastics and swimming. however, we begin tonight with what was by far the largest blackout in world history. at its peek today, nearly 10% of the world's population was without power. it happened in india, where just under 670 million people -- and that's twice the size of the u.s. population -- found themselves plunged into darkness and gridlock. and this involves something that is a bit of an issue in the u.s. an aging and often overwhelmed power grid. we begin tonight with nbc news veteran foreign correspondent, jim maceda. >> reporter: imagine being caught in a blackout the size of america and then double it. traffic lights, hundreds of

trains and subways, all grinding to a halt. that's the kind of chaos that people in india, as many as 670 million of them, faced over the past two days, as half of the national power grid shut down. so did an electric elevator in a mine shaft in west bengal trapping some 200 coal minors for hours. and air conditioning, even fans stopped in many hospitals. i paid for an x-ray, says this patient, but because of the blackout, i can't get it now. monday's outage was bad enough, but as switches tripped across the country, a 2,000 mile swath from the border with china to pakistan, was plunged into darkness. officials overwhelmed, blamed the states for using more power than they were allocated by the national government. but analysts say record blackouts are bound to happen, as an outdated grid just can't keep up with the appetite of an emerging economic superpower. >> there are going to be a lot

of tough questions to answer because this has been the worst we've seen in over a decade. >> reporter: india is used to blackouts. most key facilities like airports and power plants have dedicated generators. but the added cost of fuel to run them hurts struggling india. we need electricity, our machines don't work, and generators aren't that helpful. everyone's in trouble he said. tonight, power has returned to the capital of new delhi, but across the world's second most populous nation, tens of millions remain in the dark. jim maceda, nbc news, london. now to the conflict in syria. it's been going on, as you know, for 17 months. and this all out battle for the northern city of aleppo is now in its 12th day. and tonight, our chief foreign correspondent richard engel has learned of a development in that battle that may be a turning point for the rebels. richard is with us again tonight from inside syria. >> reporter: good evening, brian. rebel sources tell nbc news that for the first time in this conflict the free syrian army

has been armed with nearly two dozen shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles. that they came in from turkey. rebels hope this is the first batch, and say their effects will be felt soon. for days in aleppo, and throughout this war, syrian troops have had total air superiority. that is now changing. and the new anti-aircraft weapons could help their battle for aleppo. the syrian government promised to make quick work of what it called the terrorists in aleppo. but the rebels are holding on. the rebels today battled to defend every corner of their stronghold in the southwest of the city. they took over a police station, defaced images of president assad, and celebrated after destroying government vehicles. thousands of civilians continue to flee the city today. a doctor who didn't want to be fully identified escaped aleppo and said the city is critically

short of medical supplies. a few miles away, a vegetable merchant says the syrian government isn't just attacking aleppo, but shelling towns around it to cut off the rebels' movements. so you were just eating in your house, and then a big explosion? they were having dinner, he says. in towns all around aleppo, rebels are now setting up defensive positions in case they're attacked next. here they've set up a barricade on a main road. it wouldn't stop a tank invasion, but at least might slow it down. the rebels are preparing. now armed with weapons that can counter assad's feared air force. richard engel, nbc news, in northern syria. now, to mitt romney's three nation overseas trip which ended today almost the way it started here in london, with controversy. some hurt feelings and some raw tempers. campaigning back home in the states is hard enough. the stakes weren't supposed to be this high for the campaign overseas.

nbc's peter alexander is traveling with the governor and remains in warsaw tonight. peter, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. here in poland, mitt romney wrapped up his week-long foreign tour visiting several war memorials and also praising the polish people and their thriving small government and free enterprise economy. he made it clear that this trip was supposed to be a low-risk one, with romney projecting the image of a leader ready for the world stage. but it was at times marred by missteps. romney offending his olympic hosts and palestinian leaders. tensions grew today between the press and the campaign over restricted access. and this morning it boiled over when romney ignored shouted questions and a press aide angrily intervened. >> governor romney, just a few questions, sir. >> show some respect. >> you haven't taken but three questions on this trip from the press. >> show some respect.

>> reporter: that press aide later apologized to reporters, but be very clear tonight. this did not go the way the campaign had planned. as they land back in boston, they are all happy to be focusing on what they think is the top issue in this election, the economy. >> peter alexander in warsaw. peter, thanks. now to these olympic games here in london. and again tonight, the focus is in the pool and on the u.s. women's gymnastics team. but here's what we have to do tonight, because news was made here today, and it's already been flashed all around the world. we have to talk about some real results, something we normally try not to do, for the sake of those folks who like to watch it happen in prime time. so fair warning here, and lots of it. for the next two minutes or so, we're going to be talking about what happened at the olympics, who won, who lost, and the history that was made here today. and here to do that, nbc's kevin tibbles. we really do hate to do it in cases where people like to watch it happen. >> absolutely.

but, brian, as you said, history was made here in london tonight. it was an evening of records, redemption and high drama. he is now the greatest olympian of all time. tonight michael phelps proved why, winning two olympic medals, a silver and a gold. making it a career total of 19. phelps had gotten off to a rough start at these games, stunning the swim world by not making the podium in the 400 meter individual medley. but tonight, he turned it around in this, what he says, is his last olympics. >> it's the last, probably 20 meters of the race, i started smiling, because i knew we had won. a very special night, special feeling. time to get some rest for some other events. >> reporter: after the race, phelps thanked his teammates, including rival ryan lochte, for helping him make history. and across town, there was history of another kind. meet america's new sweethearts.

for the first time in a generation, when the magnificent seven captured hearts and gold in atlanta in 1996, the american women's gymnastics team are champions. and there's no doubt why. the favorites coming into london, the fab five as they're called are deep in talent and dominated this event from the vault to the floor exercises. bela karolyi coached that legendary '96 gold medal team. >> fabulous five team is a strong and powerful team, united team. >> reporter: kyla ross, the youngest. mckayla maroney, perhaps the world's best vaulter. gabby douglas, nicknamed the flying squirrel. aly raisman at 18, the team captain. and a dramatic comeback for jordyn wieber, the world champion who was in tears sunday night when she missed qualifying for her all around event. she proved what she was made of tonight.

>> i think this is good redemption for me. and just the fact that we all came together and put all our hard work in and came out with a gold medal is amazing. and i'm really proud of everybody. >> reporter: as for china, the defending olympic champions, the team missed the podium all together, finishing fourth. they're calling the fab five the greatest u.s. women's gymnastics team ever. well, when it comes to michael phelps, you really can't argue with that at all. already the u.k. papers have him on the front page saying the greatest olympian, period. >> wow! a lot of emotion out of these games here today. kevin tibbles wrapping it all up. we have an update on a story we told about you last night. the chinese swimming sensation, who smashed the world record in the 400 meter individual medley over the weekend and put in times faster than ryan lochte of the u.s., raising all kinds of doping speculation. including the american coach calling her win disturbing. well, today the british olympic

association cleared her, saying the anti-doping agency is on top of things here. she was tested, and she's clean. and score one for the home team royal family, zara phillips, who is queen elizabeth's granddaughter. helped team gb take home silver in the team equestrian event finishing behind germany. as will, kate, harry and other selected members of the family looked on. she was presented with her medal by her mom, princess anne. still ahead, as "nightly news" continues, what may be the comeback of all time, the place we are standing in right now is the proof of that. and later, they call her the missile. 17-year-old missy franklin, bringing home a gold medal. and tonight we talk to her and her proud parents.

you have seen perhaps the british world war ii era poster, keep calm and carry on. and that about sums up how this city survived world war ii. unlike the mainland u.s., the war was fought here. in fact, much of the blitz of german bombs hit this end of town, and it's been a long recovery. they lost 20,000 londoners, another 70,000 were wounded, and a million people were left homeless. but hitler picked the wrong country to defeat. and he certainly picked the wrong city. it was a stunning sight on the horizon, german bombers wing to

wing at 20 miles wide, closing in on london, and the blitz was underway. ron mitchell was 12 years old that day. >> the next thing we heard was the bombs exploding. they were bombing the docks and you could see everything going up. >> jean archer was a young girl. >> everything was burning. the sky was red. it was just an absolute nightmare, something you never forget. >> many of the volunteer firefighters had never encountered fire before. hitler had vowed to destroy london, and break the city's resolve. a big target early on was the east end, the factories, warehouses and docks vital to the war effort. but hitler picked the wrong people. the east end was packed with poor but proud immigrants. their labor built the place, and this wasn't about to stop them. >> the battle of london is still on. never before has any city with

stood such a sustained attack from the air. each day sees more damage done. >> after that first couple of nights of total shock there was defiance. he wasn't going to get his way, they were going to stand up to him. >> dee wood was a teenager back then. >> i used to go out in the morning, i didn't know if my parents would be there when i came back or not. same as thousands of other people. >> everyone volunteered for something. ron mitchell served as a bike messenger riding through blacked out, bombed out street to deliver messages. >> i remember cycling while the air raid was on. shrapnel coming down from the bursting anti-aircraft shells. >> german bombs hit parliament, damaged big ben, and buckingham palace, which oddly made the queen one with the people. she famously said the bombing at her house made her feel she could look the east end in the face. >> we're walking along to where we lived. >> today ron mitchell's boyhood

home has been rebuilt. a lot like the east end itself. land that was once pulverized and cratered, now home to apartments, a thriving financial center and the london 2012 olympic park. >> nobody ever doubted that we would win the war. we just wouldn't let it happen. otherwise there wouldn't be much point in living. >> in the end, they kept calm and carried on. at the time they called it blitz spirit. the british resolve crucial in winning the war. and just today, just this afternoon, not far from here, outside one of the new olympic venues, we happened to glance down at the unmistakable sight of pock marked bullet holes in an old stone pillar. even in this modern, gleaming city, the war is never that far off. we'll take a break. when we come back, it's not just you, real proof tonight of what these olympics are doing to people who should be doing something else.

more announcements from the democrats prior to their convention in charlotte 34 days from now. we learned today the first lady will address the convention in a prominent prime time roll. and the keynote address, which then senator obama delivered eight years ago, will go to julian castro, mayor of san antonio. he's the youngest of the big city mayors in america, and the first hispanic to deliver the keynote address at the democratic convention. in other political news. an ohio republican has announced he's leaving congress after nine terms. this is notable, because congressman steve latourette is one of the last gop moderates remaining in congress. he said today washington has changed so much since he first got there. and he lamented the fact that compromise has now become a dirty word. the folks who measure such things say the time we are

spending following these summer olympics, in some cases while being paid to follow other things, like what's going on at work, could cost american businesses $650 million in productivity before it's all over. 12% of workers admit they plan to watch some olympics coverage while at work. other surveys put that number closer to 4 in 10 americans in the american workplace. word arrived today from not far away from here in ireland, that the author maeve binchy has died. she was among the great contemporary irish writers and sold 40 million books worldwide. she authored circle of friends and tara road among her 16 novels, countless short stories. the prime minister there said today ireland has lost a national treasure. maeve binchy of county, dublin was 72. up next here tonight, here in london, the pressure was on, and missy franklin came through. tonight, how this breakout star

got her start.

finally tonight, we wanted you to meet one of the stars of these games, even though they're just getting underway.

17-year-old missy franklin, you'll see her again in the pool tonight in prime time. back home she's in high school. last night as she won her first individual gold medal in the 100 meter backstroke, her classmates were going wild as they watched live from our nbc station in denver, kusa. tonight, nbc's chris jansing talks with missy and her parents about the making of an american champion. >> reporter: watching 17-year-old missy franklin power her way to gold on monday and flashing her winning smile -- >> i couldn't be happier. >> reporter: -- it has to be hard for her parents, d.a. and dick, not to think back -- >> what are you playing with? >> a noodle. >> reporter: -- to a little girl snorkeling in the pool before she was three. and fearlessly swimming with dolphins when she was five. the kindergartner who after her first practice ever, wrote about how much she loved her team.

>> here is the one to beat. >> reporter: long before she became the breakout star of the 2011 world championships -- >> shatters the american record. >> reporter: -- missy franklin just loves the water. >> we would sit by the pool for hours after hours after hours. that child would go in and play. we'd take turns. she would never come out. >> being in the water, i can just let everything go. >> reporter: she was built for the part. 6'1", with a 72 inch wing span. and a work ethic that's earned the admiration of quarterback tim tebow, who used to work out at the same gym. >> she's doing it because she has a passion for it. that's very exciting to see. and she's so good at what she does. >> reporter: passion, but no pretense. missy's been training with the same coach at the local swim club since she was 7, just a few miles from home in centennial, colorado. where the dinner conversation is

more likely to be about her beloved dog rugor, or her mom's world class lasagna than the world championships. >> i have the best parents in the entire world. they have taught me to love with my whole heart. and to be open, and to be kind to everyone. >> reporter: like any other teen, she was thrilled to finally get her license. and drives herself to high school, regis jesuit. in all honors classes. but that's not the only thing that makes her exceptional. >> she's such a good quality kid, great ethics, great morals. >> reporter: and surprisingly, she still competes for regis. >> swimming on my high school team is unbelievable, they're my second family. >> reporter: missy loves being part of a team so much, she made a pretty remarkable decision, turning down six figures in prize money and endorsements, just so she could continue to be part of a team in college. something she couldn't do if she turned pro. >> i know, i know, it's so much money.

but i can't put a price on friendship. or teammates or that second family. there's just no price for that. >> reporter: so at a regis pep rally to send missy off to the olympics, you see melissa jeanette franklin, feared by many a competitor, is really all heart. >> i love you so much. and just knowing that no matter what happens this summer, i still get to come home to you is the best feeling in the world. >> reporter: but a feeling that just might be matched by standing atop the olympic podium. mmpass she is in it. >> and it's so nice to see her just being a high school kid.

>> she is so typically teenager. >> chris jansing, great story. thank you for sharing it with us tonight. missy franklin is in the pool tonight. all of the other olympic action, the coverage starts tonight at 8:00, 7:00 central. that for us is our broadcast on a tuesday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams reporting from london. we hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. good night. right now at 6:00, pricey presidential visits. why president obama's pricey trips to the bay area have some asking was it worth it? plus the medical issue that volley bar carrie walsh is now dealing with. >> and transfer troubles.

good tuesday evening. are chinese students being racially profiled into schools they don't want to go to? that's what the u.s. department of education is looking at, the complaints, high performing chinese students are being pushed into underperforming schools just to raise test scores. and parents don't like it. >> reporter: the investigation was launched earlier this year, jessica, state and local officials say families are very upset claiming that the district is using the issue of residency to move their kids from high achieving schools into lower performing ones. >> there were a lot of heart breaking stories about kids being pulled out in the middle of the semester, being transferred to another school, the residency was being questioned, but