you think about the fact scott parsons going to his third olympics.e's going to be in his early to mid-30s. and then he has to start in the real world, you know. he sacrificed over a decade of his life to chase this dream of getting an olympic gold. >> you've got to want it. >> nice place to train, though. >> not a bad place to live either. >>> still ahead in our next half hour, metro figures out what caused that computer glitch that brought service to a screeching halt this weekend. >>> a rotted tree crashes onto a car killing the driver in northern virginia. >> veronica continues to track severe storms in our area. we shil [ obama ] i'm barack obama, and i approve this message. [ female announcer ] every woman who believes decisions about our bodies and our health care should be our own is troubled mitt romney supports overturning roe versus wade. romney backed a law that outlaws all abortion -- even in cases of rape and incest. and that's not all. i'll cut off funding to planned parenthood. [ female announcer ] for women, planned parenthood means l

. >> but scott parson's past said the games weren't so clear. >> scott parsons is no stranger to theames. >> it's hard to describe the olympics. everyone is unique and different and that's what makes them so fun and special. >> as a kayaker, he competed in the last two olympics. he finished sixth in athens in 2004. in 2008, he was poised to medal. then a crucial mistake. a penalty for missing a gate. >> after that disappointing finish, i wasn't too sure if i wanted to continue. >> he stepped away from the sport, made him realize he couldn't live without it. >> it's fun to come out here and get away from everything and focus on the water and the sound and the feeling of the water. and definitely one of my happiest places. >> that happiness resulted in better performances. these days he is back, snaking his way toward what he hopes is an olympic metal stance. >> winning an olympic metal in london, it really would be, i guess a dream come true. >> helping him along the way, his wife and training partner. who just happens to be a former u.s. junior team member herself. >> to see him out

it's really just about the sport. >> reporter: olympic kayaker scott parsons has given the better part over whitewater with presig. to be able to focus on his lifelong dream wouldn't be possible without a good support system. >> i'm fortunate to have a perfect wife that's a school teacher at wheaton high school. and through my little bit of income from kayaking and her salary at wheaton, we do all right, we get by. and that's kind of what you sign up for. >> reporter: scott's pursuit of an olympic medal affects almost every walk of life, down to the small apartment the couple rent near the national team's training site on the canal. >> this neighborhood brookmont, where i live, is kind of the center for kayaking or for slalom kayaking in this area. i knew even while i was going to high school that the day after graduation i was packing up my car and moving to brookmont. you can't beat the two-minute walk down to the main training site. without the financial support it kind of makes it difficult. it's a difficult life decision. do i keep going and kind of stay broke or just move on? and

and then local scott parsons takes the first run on the whitewater course. >> hopefully, phelps can shake's performance. >> yeah. that's behind him. moving forward. >> while we have your attention we want to let you know you can send us your thoughts on the olympics at twitter. our handle is @news4 today. >> we'll be back >>> i'm very shocked. usually you'd think phelps was a guarantee. at least if not all, but first. >> not even to place is pretty surprising for american fans. >> that's kind of why i have -- >> this morning, fans react to the upset in the pool. the golden boy from maryland fails to medal in his first competition in london. >> it's not over yet though. here's a live look at london. the time there now is 11:00 a.m. we are gearing up for the second full day of competition in the xxx olympiad. good morning. i'm richard jordan. >> i'm angie goff. it is sunday, july 29, 2012. as you can tell from the live picture in london, a lot of clouds moving in. quite the contrast in the washington, d.c. area. >> after all that is what london is known for. we have tom kierein in for chuck