On July 28, the first day of the London 2012 Summer Olympics, the Russian Olympic team won one medal. The first Russian athlete to bring gold for Russia was judoka Arsen Galstyan who beat Japan's Hiroaki Hiraoka in the 60-kilogram final.
On July 28, the first day of the London 2012 Summer Olympics, the Russian Olympic team won one medal. The first Russian athlete to bring gold for Russia was judoka Arsen Galstyan who beat Japan's Hiroaki Hiraoka in the 60-kilogram final.
The Russian shooters, who were expected to win the first medals for Russia at the London Olympics, were less lucky. Russia’s Daria Vdovina, 22, had entered the final in a strong third position in the women’s 10-meter air rifle event, but poor shooting early on destroyed her hopes of a medal, and she finished eighth and last.
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© RIA Novosti . Vladimir Pesnya
On the first medal day of the London Olympics, Russian teams demonstrated their strong will to score their first victories. The Russian women’s volleyball squad won a convincing victory, leaving no chances for Brits in a 3-0 win. The volleyball match was attended by 15,000 spectators, with virtually all of them supporting the British team. Photo: Russian volleyball player Natalia Obmochayeva in a match of the women’s preliminary round between the Russian and British squads at the London 2012 Olympics.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev came to support the women’s volleyball team and kissed them all after their victory.
The Russian women’s basketball players scored their victory against Canadians with much more difficulty. They narrowly avoided a shock defeat to underdogs Canada in their opening match on Saturday, storming back in the fourth quarter for a 58-53 win.
The victory of the Russian women’s handball team against Angola was also not easy. The score changed in favor of one or the other team throughout the game. The Angolan squad was able to level scores several times during the match before the Russians claimed their victory 30-27.
On the Wimbledon tennis courts on Saturday, the Russian duo Nadezhda Petrova and Maria Kirilenko defeated their Polish opponents Alicja Rosolska and Klaudia Jans-Ignacik 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-2 to get into the second round of the women’s’ doubles. Photo: Russian tennis players Maria Kirilenko and Nadezhda Petrova (left to right) in a match of the first round of the women’s doubles at the London 2012 Olympics.
Russian tennis player Mikhail Yuzhny was less lucky as he was defeated by Julien Benneteau of France and got out of the men’s singles.
