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LGBT Watch at the Olympics: All eyes on U.S. women

LGBT Watch at the Olympics: All eyes on U.S. women

Spoiler alert: LGBT Watch at the Olympics is a regular feature tracking the nearly two dozen LGBT athletes at London 2012. But here is a spoiler alert! In the U.S., NBC is tape-delaying much of the London 2012 Olympics on its various stations, yet live-streaming on the Internet. Some of the results listed below may not have yet been broadcast in your area.

Looking ahead to Tuesday, LGBT Watch at the Olympics will be closely monitoring women’s soccer as the powerful United States plays North Korea.

With a win, the Americans would advance to the quarterfinals and a step closer to a medal.

The United States, led by lesbian Megan Rapinoe, tops Group G with six points, followed by France and North Korea with three points and Colombia with zero points. A lopsided loss by the U.S. could cost the Americans dearly if North Korea and/or France win and score enough goals to erase the goal-difference tiebreaker used if two or more teams end group play tied with the same points. A win is worth three points in the group standings.

Sweden, with three lesbians making an impact on its team, plays Canada in a crucial match on Wednesday.

With a win, Sweden most likely would advance to the quarterfinals. Sweden and Japan are tied with four points to lead Group F, but Sweden holds a 3-1 goal difference that could be the tiebreaker. Canada needs to beat Sweden and hope that Japan ties or loses to South Africa.

Women’s basketball

On Monday, all eyes were on women’s basketball as medal favorite United States crushed Angola, 90-38.

The U.S. is 2-0 in Group A and tied with China and Turkey with four points. The U.S. plays Turkey on Wednesday, Aug. 1, and China on Sunday, Aug. 5.

Seimone Augustus, the only out athlete on the American women’s team, was benched as a starter at point guard after a sloppy performance in the opening game Saturday. But on Monday, an inspired Augustus played 19 minutes off the bench, scoring 13 points, hitting six of nine shots including a three-pointer. She also hauled in three rebounds and doled out two assists.

Women’s handball

Brazil, featuring lesbian Mayssa Pessoa,knocked off Montengegro 27-25 in the women’s handball group play.

Brazil and Russia sport 2-0 records in Group A, leading with four points each. Brazil plays winless Great Britain on Aug. 1, Russia on Aug. 3 and Angola on Aug. 5 to conclude group play.

Catching up on the weekend

Lesbian cyclist Judith Arndt of Germany came in 37th out of the 40 riders who finished the women’s bicycling road race on Sunday. While that seems like Arndt wasn’t competitive, she finished only 59 seconds behind gold medal winner Marianne Vos. Such road races are often a game of cat and mouse, with the winners often emerging in a last-minute sprint. Arndt’s German teammate Ina-Yoko Teutenberg misses the bronze by 27 seconds, finishing fourth …

In women’s field hockey, Netherlands whipped Belgium 3-0 on Sunday in the first round of play. The Dutch are led by three lesbians: Marilyn Agliotti, Carlien Dirkse van den Heuvel and Maartje Paumen, the team captain. None scored against Belgium …

Australian lesbian Natalie Cook and her beach volleyball teammate Tamsin Hinchley lost their first match on Saturday against 2004 and 2008 gold medalists Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh of the United States. The Americans won both sets. Cook won a gold medal in 2000 during the Sydney Olympics and a bronze in 1996. She and Hinchley next play a team from the Czech Republic on Wednesday.

In archery, South African lesbian Karen Anne Hultzer finished 46th in the ranking round for women’s individual. That was good enough to advance to the next round, where Hultzer was eliminated by Pia Lionetti of Italy.

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