Olympics: How will Agenda 2020 change the future of the Games?



Olympic athletes gather in Lausanne, Switzerland for the launch of Agenda 2020 last month (IOC)


By Steven Oldham


The International Olympic Committee's Agenda 2020 will reshape the Games as we know them by focusing on the key themes of affordability, legacy and inclusion.

Since IOC President Thomas Bach introduced the set of 40 (20+20) proposals last month, it is clear that the future of the Olympic movement is changing to reflect economic and social issues faced by the world.

Simplifying the bidding process to host future Games and reducing the costs of doing so is one of the central proposals. Being able to submit joint bids with other cities or countries is a step in the right direction, as is the reduction in presentations by bidding cities. With the IOC also covering some logistical fees for bidders, this should drive down overheads and make hosting the Games an attractive, viable option to a broader range of nations than in previous years.

This will open up the prospect of a first Middle Eastern Games, for example. After securing both the 2019 World Athletics Championships and the 2022 football World Cup, Qatar would be the obvious candidate in this part of the world. However, the sheer scale of the event might mean a joint bid with neighbouring countries could be more realistic.

Another option would be a Nordic Games - and not necessarily a Winter one, given that Sweden has previously hosted the Summer Games. Both Norway and Finland have experience in hosting Diamond League and European Championship athletics respectively.

Hopefully, these reforms will help avoid another situation like the bidding process for the 2022 Winter Olympics, which will now only be contested by Beijing and Almaty after four European cities, for various reasons, withdrew their candidacy in quick succession this year.

Wherever future editions are held, a key part of bids will be legacy plans after the Games have left town.  IOC members will be keen to point to London as a good example, which used a good mix of existing and temporary facilities. New builds are also well used - the Olympic stadium will host the 2017 World Athletics Championships and will become West Ham United's new home. The Copper Box regularly hosts professional boxing and is home to handball and badminton teams as well as community sports facilities. Next year, the Lee Valley Hockey Centre will host that sport's Euro Championships.

Sadly, this is not always the case - just ten years ago, the Games returned to Athens, the birthplace of the Olympics. However, ill-thought plans to build stadia exclusively for beach volleyball, softball, taekwondo and so on have led to them standing derelict and in ruins.  Costing an estimated €9bn, the Greeks have precious little left to show for their money.

The abandoned Olympic Aquatic centre in Athens, ten years on
(Milos Bicanski)

The IOC are looking to take a more hands-on and supportive role for prospective hosts in the sustainability of their infrastructure to avoid this in future. The use of existing facilities is to be further encouraged, and to avoid potential white elephants, temporary arenas will be preferred to costly unviable stadia.

Another aim of Agenda 2020 is for the Games to be ever more inclusive. This includes a target of 50% participation rate for female athletes and the principle of non-discrimination against athletes is to be expanded to include sexual orientation.

The commitment to gender equality follows the first Games in which every country included at least one woman in their team. Concerns about non-participation of women in the Olympics were eased by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei all including women in their teams for the first time at London 2012 but there is still work to be done to reach the desired 50/50 split.

Women's sport continues to grow in popularity and it is vital that the IOC is seen to be trying to balance the number of places to make the event as a whole fairer and representative of participation levels at the grass roots.

Another point of the gender equality recommendation was to encourage the introduction of mixed gender team sports. In recent days, FINA have announced the introduction of mixed diving and synchronised swimming competitions to their events. Whilst there is no guarantee these disciplines will be added to the Olympic programme, the IOC will no doubt look favourably on this development.

Agenda 2020's proposals will no doubt affect how we view the Olympics. Work is now needed by the NOCS to implement them. If they succeed in making the Games fairer, more cost-effective and inclusive, the movement will have changed for the better.

The IOC are due to vote on the Agenda 2020 proposals at the 127th IOC session on December 8-9. This article is not a full summary of the proposals - I have concentrated on what I feel are the most important aspects. A full list of the 40 proposals can be found on the Olympic website here



Will future Olympics feature synchronised swimming with
men competing alongside women? (Sports Tribe)

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Who should be on the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shortlist? Part 1

By Steven Oldham

It's almost that time of year again. A month today, we will know who has succeeded Andy Murray as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. 

Pleasingly, there is no shortage of contenders this year, with standout performers in big sporting occasions including the Winter Olympics, Ryder Cup, Commonwealth Games and continental championships in a number of sports.

While the award is seen as old fashioned and irrelevant in some quarters, it still manages to attract A-list stars from all sports to the ceremony and remains a strong ratings winner among the general public.

The official shortlist of contenders is not due til late November, but here I look at who could and should be in the running.

Jo Pavey (Athletics)

European 10,000m champion Jo Pavey
 

The distance runner from Devon should be a certainty for this year's shortlist - and among the favourites to win. She was crowned European 10,000m champion at the age of 40 after a memorable victory in Zurich earlier this year. What's even more is impressive is she gave birth just ten months earlier. That she is still competing at such a competitive level is an inspiration to other athletes - both elite and amateur - who retire or think they are past their best. For this alone she should be included as one of the award's criteria is the impact the athlete has had beyond their achievement. As well as her European title, she also picked up a Commonwealth bronze in Glasgow in the same event just ten days later.

Rory McIlroy (Golf)

2014 has been a standout year for McIlroy
 

Rory McIlroy's stunning year is the perfect antidote to an off-par 2013.  He won the Open Championship for the first time, PGA Championship for a second time and helped Europe to a third consecutive Ryder Cup win. In addition to this he has already been named PGA Player of the Year and returned to number one in the world rankings, a position he has held since May. Rather than affecting him negatively, his romantic split from tennis star Caroline Wozniacki seems to have invigorated his form on the green.  He also settled the debate on which country he will represent at the Olympics in 2016 should he qualify. He'll play for Ireland rather than Great Britain as golf returns to the Olympic programme for the first time in over a century.

 

Claudia Fragapane (Gymnastics)

Fragapane has burst onto the international gymnastics scene in 2014

 

The teenager is eligible to win the Young Sports Personality trophy, but her achievements in 2014 are worth a nomination for the main award.  In her first year of senior competition, she has represented her country at European and international level. She was one of the stars of Glasgow 2014 - taking four gold medals in both team and individual events - all at aged 16 - she only turned 17 in October.  This made her the most successful English female competitor at the Commonwealth Games in over 80 years. She also scored European and British silver medals and if she continues her current rate of progress, could be a leading star for Team GB in the Rio 2016 Olympics.

 

 

Lewis Hamilton (Motor racing)

 

Lewis is one race away from being a double champion

 

 At the time of writing Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton is one race away from winning his second world title. Should he triumph, he will become only the fourth Brit to win more than one world title at motor racing's highest table. He now owns the record for most British victories, with 32 surpassing Nigel Mansell's previous best which has stood for over 20 years. In every race he has finished, he has stepped onto the podium. A crucial five straight victories in the latter part of the season has helped him catch and overtake Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg. The pairing have both contribute to their dominant team racking up the most points by one constructor in a season in history with a hefty 86 points still available in the final race in Abu Dhabi, where double points are controversially awarded for the first time.

 



 

 Lizzy Yarnold (Skeleton)

 

Team GB's sole gold medallist in Sochi: Lizzy Yarnold

 



Lizzy Yarnold continued Team GB's proud record in the skeleton event at the Winter Olympics in Sochi in February as she won the same title as compatriot Amy Williams did four years earlier. Despite not being an atypical winter sports country, this was the fourth consecutive Games a British woman has stepped onto the podium in this event. Her triumph was the highlight of a successful Games for Britain, who enjoyed their best Games since 1924 with four medals. Largely down to her success, UK Sport funding for skeleton was almost doubled for the next Olympic cycle to the Pyeongchang Games in 2018, as part of a record level investment in winter sports following the British Olympic and Paralympic teams outperforming targets with a total of ten medals. And Yarnold? She wants to defend her title in Korea.

 

You can read part two of this blog HERE

 

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Glasgow 2014: DAY 9: Gymnast Claudia Fragapane wins fourth gold, bowls success for Scotland, Sally Pearson wins hurdles gold for Australia

Claudia Fragapane wins her fourth gold of Glasgow 2014 (BBC Sport)

By Steven Oldham MISS DAY 8 HIGHLIGHTS? CLICK HERE
 
Teenage gymnast Claudia Fragapane won her fourth gold medal of Glasgow 2014 today, by taking victory on the floor, and in doing so became the first woman in 84 years to win as many golds for England.
 
She had previously won the vault, all around and team all around gold earlier in the week and the 16-year-old contributed to a highly successful gymnastics programme for the Home Nations, with England, Scotland and Wales all picking up medals.
 

Fragapane's gold medals are proving crucial to her country as England continue to lead the medals table from Australia and Canada.
 
Fellow gymnast Nile Wilson opened his invidiual gold account by beating team-mate Kristian Thomas to the horizontal bar competition.
 
Divers Jack Laugher and Chris Mears added another top medal in the 3m synchro event, with team-mates Nick Robinson-Baker and Freddie Woodward picking up bronze in the same event.
 
Steve Lewis added gold in the pole vault, with Tiffany Porter claiming silver in the 100m hurdles.
 

Darren Burnett is the men's singles winner (Jeff Holmes)

 

Host nation Scotland enjoyed another successful day on the bowling green, picking up two more gold medals.
 
Darren Burnett won the men's singles competition by easily beating Canada's Ryan Bester 21-9, while the mens' fours beat England 16-8 to secure their title.
 
Gymnast Daniel Purvis took his first Commonwealth title by winning the parallel bars from English pair Nile Wilson and Max Whitlock.
 
Runner Lynsey Sharp also put in a stunning performance to break up the African monopoly in the 800m, taking silver behind Kenya's Eunice Sum.

Reigning champion Moses Kipsiro took a grandstand finish in the 10,000m
(Uganda Records)

 
 Uganda won their first gold medal of the 2014 Games as Moses Kipsoro retained his 10,000m title in an incredibly close race.

Kipsiro had trailed Canada's Cameron Levins into the final straight but both he and Kenya's Josphat Bett managed to beat the man from North America across the line.

Kipsiro won the race by just 0.03 seconds, the closest margin at this Games, closer than Kemar Bailey Cole's 0.10 gap to Adam Gemili in the 100m.

Double Commonwealth champion Sally Pearson celebrates
(Fox Sports News)

Olympic champion Sally Pearson was Australia's star performer on day nine, taking the 100m hurdles final ahead of England's Tiffany Porter and Angela Whyte of Canada.

In doing so she retained the title she won four years ago in Delhi, India.

There was also gold for Eleanor Patterson in the high jump, and divers Matthew Mitcham and Dominic Beddggod took the 10m synchro title.

Olympic champion Mitcham now finally has a gold Commonwealth to add to his collection, having won four silver medals in the last Games four years ago.

Tianwei Feng win's womens singles gold (BBC Sport)

Singapore continue to do well in table tennis, winning both the women's singles and men's doubles events today.

Indeed, their women locked out the podium, with Delhi champion Tianwei Feng retaining her title by beating Mengyu Yu 4-1 in the final. Ye Lin took bronze ahead of Australian Jian Fang Lay.

Gao Ning and Li Hu are the new men's doubles champions after they beat Indian pair Sharath Achanta and Amalraj Arputharaj 3-1.

CLICK HERE FOR COMMONWEALTH GAMES HOMEPAGE



DAY 9 DIGEST IN 60 SECONDS...

• Kenya's impressive form in the distance running events continues. They locked out the podium in the men's 3000m steeplechase with Jonathan Ndiku taking gold.
• There was a first medal for St Lucia today. Levern Spencer took bronze in the high jump - matching her achievement from Delhi, where she was again her country's only medallist
• Usain Bolt helped Jamaica through to the final of the men's 4x100m relay
• South Africa added another gold medal; Tracy-Lee Botha and Colleen Piketh won the women's pairs.
• Jennifer Abel was another athlete to retain a title won in India four years ago - she picked up gold for Canada in the 1m springboard diving event.

Glasgow 2014: DAY 8: David Rudisha upstaged by Botswana's Nijel Amos, Daniel Keatings secures individual gold for Scotland, England pull ahead in medal table

Nigel Amos beats favourite David Rudisha (Eurosport)

By Steven Oldham

Olympic 800m champion David Rudisha had to settle for silver today as Botswana's 20-year-old Nijel Amos upstaged his more illustrious rival at Hampden Park.

Amos scored Botswana's first medal of any colour by taking the 800m title, an upgrade of the Olympic silver he won in London two years ago behind Kenya's Rudisha.

This result nicely sets up future clashes between the two, a battle which is sure to continue until the next Olympics in two years time.




Scotland's Daniel Keatings on the way to gold (BBC Sport Scotland)

Scotland again tasted gold with Daniel Keatings taking the men's pommel horse ahead of England's Max Whitlock and Louis Smith.

Eilidh Child took silver in the women's 400m while Alex Gladkov took bronze in wrestling in the 65kg weight class.





Claudia Fragapane, 16, is already a 3x CWG champion (Guardian Sport)

England enjoyed another successful day and continue to lead the medal table past the halfway stage.

Gymnastics continues to be a happy hunting ground and Max Whitlock and Claudia Fragapane both won their third gold medal in the floor and vault events respectively.  

Rebecca Downie's victory in the uneven bars - her second gold - mean the English have locked out every gold medal available in the women's events.

David Weir added a first Commonwealth gold to his Paralympic title in the T54 1500m in Hampden Park, while cyclist Alex Dowsett won the men's time trial after missing out on the Tour de France.

There was also success on the bowling green for the women's triples who took gold by thrashing Australia 22-4.

India's Yogeshwar Dutt celebrates another gold (Economic Times)

India continue to do well in wrestling and also picked up a first gold medal in athletics today.

Yogeshwar Dutt (65kg) has stepped up a weight class since winning Commonwealth gold on home soil, but like compatriot Sushil Kumar the result stayed the same and he won gold today beating Canada's Jevon Dalfour in the final.

Babita Kumari secured a first major international gold by winning the women's 55kg from Brittanee Laverdure of Canada, while discus thrower Vikas Shive Gowda improved his silver to gold four years on.

Meaghan Benefito wins two gold in as many days (BBC Sport)



Canada had another successful day picking up gold in weightlifting, diving and wrestling.

George Kobaladze broke the Games clean and jerk record by lifting 229kg on his way to winning the men's heavyweight weightlifting competition.

Diver Meaghan Benefito won the 10m platform and her team-mate Roseline Filion took bronze a day after they won  gold in synchro at the same height.

The Canadians shared the spoils with India today with both nations winning two gold medals. Tamerlan Tagziev (men's 85kg) and Danielle Lappage (women's 63kg) have helped Canada to seven gold medals in wrestling this time, three more than in Delhi.

DAY 8 DIGEST IN 60 SECONDS...

• Nigeria's Blessing Okagbare took a sprint double by taking the women's 200m
• Geraint Thomas took bronze for Wales in the men's time trial ahead of Sunday's road race
• Malaysia's Ooi Tze Liang took the men's 3m springboard ahead of English pair Jack Laugher and Oliver Dingley
• They may only have two medals so far but Northern Ireland are set for a bumper Friday with NINE medals guaranteed in boxing
• Linda Villumsen took gold in the women's time trial for New Zealand; she had previously won silver in Delhi four years ago.

England's Helen Clitheroe not retiring after Commonwealth Games...but risks being 'strung up' if she guns for Rio 2016!

By Steven Oldham

CLICK HERE FOR COMMONWEALTH GAMES HOMEPAGE

England's veteran distance runner Helen Clitheroe is adamant she will continue to be an athlete past the Commonwealth Games where she is set to race in the 5000m this weekend.

The 40-year-old has no intention of hanging up her running spikes just yet, as Glasgow 2014 is the culmination of a lengthy return from injury to top class competition that ruled her out of London 2012.

She is realistic however, when it comes to carrying on until the next Olympics in Brazil in two years time.

Helen said:"I wanted to prove to myself that I could get fit again and get back to competing.

I hope I can inspire older athletes. There's me and Jo Pavey both in the distance running team, we're both 40 - to have one of us that age is pretty unusual - two of us is pretty unheard of.

I had my best year in athletics at 37. Most athletes have retired by that age - if I can inspire people to carry on that would be great."

So what about her own future?

"After the Commonwealths I want to get another few another 5000m races and I will assess from there.

Rio 2016?! I think my husband would string me up if I went home and said I wanted to go for that!," she joked, before adding: "It's not easy being an athlete financially these days and at this stage of my career I have to justify what I'm doing. So I've not definitely ruled it out but I'd say it was very, very unlikely."

Helen after winning European championship gold in 2011

Helen - a European indoor 3000m champion and a Commonwealth bronze medallist from her home Games in Manchester twelve years ago - is heading into her fifth Friendly Games and it is obviously a competition that is close to her heart.

" The Commonwealths have been a massive part of my career. Kuala Lumpur '98 was my first senior international meet, I won a medal in Manchester, and I captained the woman's team in Delhi four years ago.

Glasgow 2014 was a real motivation when I was injured. I missed London 2012, and after seeing how amazing it was, I realised how special it was to perform in front of a home crowd. It meant so much to get the phone call to say I'd been picked, so I'm definitely still excited for the Commonwealth Games," she said.

The Preston-born runner is up against strong competition from Kenya's women, in the shape of Mercy Cherono and Janet Kisa. Distance running has again proved to be the African's trump card in these Commonwealths with Kenya's women taking four of their country's five gold medals to date. They also locked out the podium for 10,000m.  

"There's two really strong girls from Kenya in my race. It's a straight final - no heats - so anything can happen and I have to be ready for that. You never know what will happen in distance running and I need to be up in the mix.

I'd like to think I can beat my PB - but to be honest, that doesn't really matter in these competitions - it's all about where you finish. I certainly won't be running around looking at the clock. Obviously, it would be nice to beat my PB, but I'm more focussed on getting the performance to be competitive and I'm also determined to enjoy the moment."

"I can't wait to start competing now. You start to realise how close it is watching everyone in the holding camp and seeing the excitement."

Glasgow 2014: DAY 6: England dominate gymnastics team events, Canada rack up the medals, Kenya lock out long distance podium

England's gold-winning gymnasts (BBC Sport)

By Steven Oldham MISS DAY 5 HIGHLIGHTS? CLICK HERE

England dominated the gymnastic events today, taking gold in both the men's and women's team events.

A returning Louis Smith helped the men to gold in his first competition since the London 2012 Olympics.

Smith, Kristian Thomas, Max Whitlock, Nile Wilson and Sam Oldham - who missed two rotations due to an injury sustained in the vault - took England's first gold in this event since 2002 ahead of Scotland and Canada.

Hours later, the women's team matched their male counterparts by beating Australia and Wales to gold.

Rebecca Downie, Claudia Fragapane, Ruby Harrold, Hannah Whelan and Kelly Simm kept it clean and made the most of an error-prone display by Australia to take home the title.

In the pool, Ben Proud won his second gold medal of the Games by taking the 50m freestyle competition to add to the butterfly title he won over the same length.

There was also success for the men's 4x100m relay team who beat Australia to win gold in the final event in the pool.

Catherine Pendrel on her way to gold for Canada (@sarahtweetering)

Canada enjoyed their best day at Glasgow 2014 yet, picking up gold in athletics, cycling, weightlifting and wrestling and moved up to third in the medal table ahead of Scotland.

Jim Steacy matched Sultana Frizzell by winning the hammer event ahead of England's Nick Miller and Scotland's Mark Dry.

Damien Warner took the men's decathlon, while Catherine Pendrel won took the women's cross country cycling event ahead of team-mate Emily Batty.

Korey Jarvis also won gold for the Canadians in the 125kg, four years after he took silver in the 96kg event in Delhi. Marie-Ève Beauchemin-Nadeau also took weightlifting gold.

Kenya's dominant 10,000m runners (@VOASonnySports)

Kenya enjoyed another successful day in track and field, including a clean sweep of the podium in the women's 10,000m.

Joyce Chepkirui took the gold ahead of team-mates Florence Kiplagat and Emily Chebet.

Faith Kibiegon took victory in the women's 1500m but Hellen Obiri surprisingly missed out on a medal in the same event.

Sushil Kumar is now a 2x Commonwealth champion (@TheRSSPiyussh)        

India continued their strong pedigree in wrestling today with three gold medals, in the women's 48kg and men's 57kg and 74kg weight classes.

Sushil Kumar (74kg) has stepped up a weight since Delhi but the result remained the same, as he took victory over Pakistan's Qamar Abbas.



New 110m hurdle champion Andrew Riley (@TweetCam2014)



Jamaica are top ten on the medal table mostly due to their performance in athletics, and today they added titles in men's hurdles, and women's triple jump and 400m.

Not to be outdone by Kenya, the Jamaicans dominated the 400m and took all three places on the podium with Stephanie McPherson beating Novolene Williams-Mills and Christine Day to the title.
Kimberley Williams took triple jump gold, while Andrew Riley held off England's William Sharman to take the 110m hurdles.

DAY SIX DIGEST IN 60 SECONDS

• Scotland broke their medal record today with silver in gymnastics, swimming and shooting.
• Georgia Davies handed Wales a second gold in the pool after the country had waited 40 years for one.
  There was a first medal for Fiji, with weightlifter Apolonia Vaivai taking bronze in the women's 75kg weight class.
• Barbados also made their debut on the medal table with a bronze medal in the 110m hurdles for Shane Brathwaite
• Malta are still without a medal but it's not for a lack of effort. They missed out on bronze in wrestling today as David Galea lost to England's Mike Grundy in the 74kg freestyle.

Glasgow 2014: DAY 5: Scotland guarantee best ever Games with bowls success, Jamaica take athletics gold, Malaysia enjoy best day

Scotland's history makers Alex Marshall and Paul Foster (@_dpaj)

MISSED DAY 4 HIGHLIGHTS? CLICK HERE

By Steven Oldham 

It was only a matter of time before Scotland beat their eleven gold medals from Melbourne 2006 given their successful start to Glasgow 2014, and, with six days left, they achieved this today with victory in bowls as Alex Marshall and Paul Foster won the men's pairs.

The pair romped to an easy 20-3 victory over Malaysia and in doing so secured their place in Scottish folklore as the athletes who confirmed a historic best for the country.

Libby Clegg's victory in the T12 100m in para-sport athletics was another milestone matched, as Scotland now have 33 medals from this Games - matching their best ever total haul from a single Commonwealths.

Nicol David playing England's Laura Massaro (@starsport_my)

Malaysia enjoyed their best day of Glasgow 2014 so far, picking up gold in both squash and badminton.

World number one Nicol David beat English challenger Laura Massaro to take the women's squash event while they again outperformed the English in the mixed team badminton event, meaning both David and the badminton team retain the titles they won in Delhi four years ago.

Kemar Bailey Cole wins the 100m ahead of Adam Gemili (@sportsnet)

Jamiacan gold medals are like buses; you wait ages for one then two turn up at once.

Predictably, both came in athletics - Kemar Bailey-Cole won the 100m, and O'Dayne Richards took the shot put.

Veronica Campbell-Brown had to settle for silver in the 100m sprint, with team-mate Kerron Stewart third. Nigeria's Blessing Okagbare won the race.

Welsh swimmer Jazz Carlin (Getty Images)



Swimmer Jazz Carlin became the first women in 40 years to win a Commonwealth event for Wales as she took the 800m freestyle.

She took her first Games title ahead of New Zealand's Lauren Boyle and Brittany Maclean and now has Commonwealth gold, silver and bronze.

This was Wales' third gold this Games  in three different sports - swimming, judo and rhythmic gymnastics.

English discus thrower Dan Greaves (@spogo)

England had another successful day with titles in the pool, squash and athletics.

Swimmer Ollie Hynd completed the grand slam and added Commonwealth gold to his collection, which already includes Paralympic, European and world titles, by winning the SM8 200m medley. 18-year-old Sophie Taylor took the 100m breaststroke final, having won her semi final and been the fastest in the heats. 

Discus thrower Dan Greaves secured his country's first gold medal in athletics by winning the F42/44 final ahead of Wales' Aled Davies and Nigeria's Richard Okigbazi.

Nick Matthew retained his Delhi 2010 title by winning an all-English final in the men's squash against team-mate James Willstrop. Peter Barker's bronze meant the English completed a clean sweep of the podium, with Laura Massaro also winning silver.

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DAY 5 DIGEST IN 60 SECONDS...

• Northern Ireland edged closer to the top prize by picking up silver in the men's triples bowls competition
• Cameroon won their first gold medal of the Games, and first since the 2002 Games, as weightlifter Marie Fegue takes victory in the 69kg weight class.
• Singapore continued their dominance in table tennis, adding the men's team event to the women's title they took on day 4
• Medal table leaders Australia continue to add to their medal tally, winning gold in shooting and swimming
• Canada's Sultana Frizzell retained her hammer title from Delhi 2010 and beat her own Games record in the process