australian sally pearson beat dawn harper shall the reining olympic champion. her u.s.mmate kelly wells took the bronze. in dressage, rafalca, the horse co-owned by mitt romney's wife ann failed to qualify for the medal rounds. here's a look at the medal count headed into the 12th day of competition. china has 73 medals. including 34 gold. team usa in second with 70. 30 gold. britain and russia tied for third with 48. britain with 22 gold and russia 10. one frightening moment in men's weightlifting. germany's matthias steiner, he lost his balance while trying to lift 432 pounds. the barbell came crashing down on his neck. he managed to walk off the platform but did not come back for another attempt. i guess not. >>> to baseball now. angels at oakland. the a's homer four times starting with johnny gomez. solo in the first inning and back-to-back long balls in the sixth. norris and rosales. that put the a's up 9-0. in the eighth. angels struck back. they move past l.a. in the west. houston, pretty much national second baseman espinosa against the astros and espinosa wins

and elsewhere on day twelve world champion sally pearson won gold in the one hundred meter hurdles with a new olympic record of twelve point three five seconds you're straying was just two hundredth of a second ahead of reigning champion dawn harper of the usa the gold was a strenuous first in track and field after games american kelly wells two bronze. and in the meantime three goals on day eleven in synchronized swimming diving and athletics help russia move up to fifteen the overall medal standings in the poll of favorite. anastasio mushin are produced and almost flawless performance to win that u.s. event russia have dominated the jew at arras team event in this sport since sydney two thousand. it was a brilliant showpiece and had a very complicated performance and they did their best if it was clear for both the judges and the crowd they were head and shoulders above their opponents they are one of the best two it's in history and now we all people fingers crossed for the team competition where we should add another goal to our tally. and in the meantime he has a heart after gold i

it was sally pearson. australia had been watching her with pressure on her.atulating anybody else. the big night for america, the 200 meters could go for a 1-2-3. allyson felix and jeter, i think jamaica may have something to say about it. >> i know, we'll wait and see. >> a man who was allegedly injured 24 hours previously was something of a laz russ like rebirth for the al year yan athlete. he had been in the 800 meters heat. he wanted to pull out but a bit of paperwork hadn't been put in in time so he was made to compete, got 200 meters and decided to walk off. so he was disqualified for not giving his best. as it was, it was reinstated, competed in the 1500 meters and blew the rest of the field away and gone home with gold and leaving everybody else wondering what on earth happened. amanda davies, thank you very much. >>> a scary moment at the games, 2008 medalist steiner drops a 432 bar bell on his neck. amazingly he was able to get up and walk away. he of course, had to withdraw. he was taken to the hospital for x-rays. no word on any long lasting injur

in the 100-meter hurdles, americans dawn harper and kellie wells were edged out of the gold by sally pearson and bronze respectively. lolo jones, who fell at ninth of ten hurdles four years ago finished fourth. in the 200 semis, sanya richards-ross, allyson felix and carmelita jeter advanced. and how about the algerian runner, kicked out of the olympics monday for not giving his all in the 800 meters. turned out he had a knee injury and wasn't supposed to be in the event. he's allowed back in the games and takes the gold in the 1500 meters ahead of the american. tom rivers, abc news, london. >> and in case you are wondering what is on tap today, the men's 400 meter hurdles, women's 200 meter. both are finals. other medal events. women's beach volleyball, two american teams will go for the gold. >> i don't know. the usa is going to take the top two medals, i don't know. >> that's right. i want to get, us to the top of the medal board. >> that's true. >> catch china. that's good. helps our numbers out. >>> coming up next, an extended "the skinny," this morning, with claims rihanna is a little

. >> the 100-meter hurdles, americans were edged out by sally pearson. they took silver and bronze.ife, she finished fourth despite being the favorite. >> some of the big events on tap, track and field, 400 hurdles, women's 200 meter. women's beach volleyball where the two american team will face off for the gold. >> back to lolo, "the new york times" did a scathing profile of her saying she is more about hype than talent. you wonder, took fourth in the event, does that lend credence to the article. that's my girl. >> i thought she did pretty well. it was a scathing article. coming out during the olympics. come on. >> next, remembering the life of a celebrated american composer. and harshness of bleach. and free ourselves from worrying about the ones we love. new lysol power & free has more cleaning power than bleach. how? the secret is hydrogen peroxide. it attacks tough stains and kills 99.9% of germs. new lysol power & free. powerful cleaning that's family friendly. another step forward in our mission for health. i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out med

. >> the 100-meter hurdles, americans were edged out by australian sally pearson.k silver and bronze. and lolo jones, my ex-wife, she finished fourth despite being the favorite. >> some of the big events on tap, track and field, 400 hurdles, women's 200 meter. both of those are finals. other medals include women's beach volleyball where the two american team will face off for the gold. >> back to lolo, "the new york times" did a scathing profile of her saying she is more about hype than talent. you wonder, took fourth in the event, does that lend credence to the article. that's my girl. >> i thought she did pretty well. it was a scathing article. coming out during the olympics.

hurdles it was a limb pick a silver medalist gone hop and to top almost off ouch to australia's sally pearson in london the american cut to time of twelve point six five seconds to claim victory in the open and finally your logic of is russia's most successful sly warda yet he now competes for switzerland as he moves there is a child the athlete finished fourth us the winter olympics in vancouver and now targets gold in sochi but which country will he represent there altie went to find out. well it's really simple story how i started snowboarding we moved from. holland to switzerland with my parents and my family and back then in ninety six and i mean moves from holland there was i didn't know what mountains were and moved into switzerland i just wanted to climb up there and do some sports and my brother discovered snowboarding and i just started from there and never i never let go. my feelings are really really not so much emotional it's more like i said this is more towards the sport this is my goals in the sport it's has to do with achieving my goals and which team can promote me better ca

it was olympic silver medalist dawn harper who took top honors after losing out to australia's sally pearson in london the american copped a time of twelve point six five seconds to claim victory. now reigning murcia g.p. champion casey stoner looks to be in the right form to claim his second straight win in america as the australian rider dominated the final free practice for the indianapolis grand prix the repsol honda rider caught the fastest time of all three sessions with teammate danica traces second biggest on the day ben's fees rounded off the top three all guy lorenzo leads produced by twenty three points of the top of the standings but the yamaha had to settle for seventh spot just ahead of the cattle valentino rossi who's such to return to yemen home next season. and finally by logic. is russia's most successful snowboarder yet he now competes for switzerland ask him if there is a child the athlete finished fourth at the winter olympics in vancouver and now targets gold in sochi but which country will he be represented. by to fight. well it's really simple story how i started snow

in the floor exercise. >> the victory, dawn harper in second. >> in track and field australian sally pearsonmoments for the judges to figure out who won. in the end pearson celebrated gold by just two hundredths of a second. >> i did clip a hurdle. i remember thinking, oh, my god, i think you're losing it. i'm bringing home the silver, pretty proud. >> american took the bronze while lolo jones finished fourth. >> it is over! >> team usa against team usa in women's beach volleyball. on tuesday misty may-treanor and kerri walsh-jennings beat china. a frightening moment during the weightlifting competition. germa germany's athlete dropped the barbell on his neck during the lift. the olympic champion managed to wave to the crowd as he left the platform. he had to withdraw from the prosecute heavyweight competition. doctors say he's going to be okay, although he does have a bit of back pain. one other note, ann romney's horse failed to make the cut in the dressage competition. now to the rest of the day's top stories. >>> admitted killer jared lee loughner faces life in prison after pleading guil

anxious moments later australian sally pearson celebrated gold.s will play for a gold medal. >> reporter: beach volleyball, the dynamic duo has done it again. misty may-treanor and kerri walsh-jennings faced china and now they face an all american battle for gold. >> we fought hard and we fought together. >> prepare to be wowed by the russians. >> putting their michael jackson swim suits aside the russian synchronized swimmers dressed up like dolls for the finals wowing the crowd and the judges for gold. a consolation for one athlete who did not win a medal, pole vaulter was upset and in tears after her final. she soon followed with an elated tweet. epic day. her boyfriend proposed and she said yes. a special day after all. as in the medal count, china open up the gap a little bit with 73 medals to the u.s.'s 70. back to you guys. >> michelle, thanks very much. >> let's head to natalie with a check of the rest of today's stories. morning again. >> morning, everyone. the man who shot arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords and 18 other people, six

sally pearson ought to win this race. smart money says five, six, ten other people ought to win besides lolo jones. i agree anything can happen in the hurdles, like watching skiing. lolo jones can't be counted out but probably not the smrt money favorite. >> no shortage of drama. gentlemen, thank you very much. can you catch track and field coverage throughout the day on nbc. more from london including which royal would you want to have over for tea. we're going to ask members of team usa. first these messages. wardrobe. cute. then new activia breakfast blend. a great way to help start the day. mmm... creamy lowfat yogurt with grains in yummy breakfast flavors, like apple cinnamon. its hearty, with twice the protein of regular lowfat yogurt and helps regulate your digestive system. our morning routines are important, aren't they? new activia breakfast blend. it's not for colds, it's not for pain, it's just for sleep. because sleep is a beautiful thing. ♪ zzzquil, the non-habit forming sleep-aid from the makers of nyquil.

meter hurdles saw the usa's dawn harper looking to retain her title but australi australian's sally pearson won by 0.02 to take gold. >> and nigerian was the one to watch getting off the blocks, and makhloufi left them in the dust and won by a comfortable margin. >> china is leading the gold medal table. 34 golds. the usa a close second with 30. the total medal count is also quite tight, 73 to usa's 70. team gb has surpassed the total haul from beijing with 48 medals. not too shabby. >> and it's hit the total target set by sport england. key events for today include quarterfinals of men's boxing tournament. from the olympic stadium, finals of the men's 110 meter hurdles as welas the women's 200 meters final. >>> just want to bring you some news here, earnings news we've been on the lookout. india's mahindra said june quart profit was above forecast, 600 rupees. they say sales were 2.5 billion. first quarter net profit is a "b" for mahindra. >>> spain's tourism industry generated almost 16% of total gdp last year but spanish confederation of hotels say domestic bookings fell by 30% in july.

the night belonged to sally pearson, breaking an olympic record. nobody was going to beat her. both americans ran great and brought in more medals for the medal count. >> what are you looking for today? >> well, allyson felix, she's been snubbed two olympics in a row by veronica campbell. in that 200-meter gold. she said all season long, this is the one she wants. allyson felix will be the one to watch. >> meanwhile, usain bolt going for number two. >> it's really interesting. usain has an opportunity to do something nobody has ever done before. and that's win the 100 and the 200 in back-to-back olympics, believe it or not. he's going to be the favorite in the 200 meters. he could challenge a world record. we haven't seen him run this well in the last three years. >> okay. dan o'brien, thanks very much. now let's get to josh and the rest of the morning's headlines. >>> we're going to begin with an emergency at the bottom of the world. an american stranded in antarctica with a medical emergency. rescue teams dispatched to new zealand must wait for a break in the weather, before

>> yeah, it was 100 meter hurdles and it came down to dawn harper and sally pearson of australia andnd looked up, didn't know who had won. it was that close. and the u.s. missed it and got silver just by that much. >> zain, i happen to think beach volleyball is always historic, always an intense moment of history. >> you do, do you? right, why am i not surprised? >> these finals are particularly historic. what's going on here? >> reporter: well, the good news for the u.s. is that the u.s. is going to win gold. and i know this because the u.s. is actually playing the u.s. in the finals. so congratulations. >> process of elimination. >> reporter: in advance of winning the gold medal. a couple of coo things, misty may-treanor and kerri walsh jennings have had to go into couples therapy because of bad dynamics head of the olympics and all four of the athletes on the u.s. beach volleyball final team have been having dinner together and just being great buddies but then secretly trying to find out are. so it's going to be a fight even though you'll get gold and silver. >> interesting. i ho

i think one of the most heartwarming of the entire olympics coming when australia's sally pearson wonhe 100-meter hurdles. so close, they had to wait to see the results. this is her reaction. look at her. oh, she was so happy. you know, at the olympics, you cheer for everybody, right? you're just so happy for the athletes regardless of the country when they come from after seeing the reaction after so much hard work and time. see how close that finish is. wow, tonight, all-american final in beach volley when. april ross and jenny kessy in their first olympics play against two-time olympic champions misty may-treanor and kerri walsh-generalings. they're hoping for their third gold medal. bmx racing included for just the second time at these olympic games. carl? >> i love it. you got to give it to team gb who got so much grief early on for not getting, already their 22 golds at last good, they had one gold in 1996. this time, 22 golds. >> they're so thrilled. the brits on the ground are so pleased. the whole experience. the golds and the whole process. >> thank you, michelle. >> all usa