The '08 Olympics were Beautiful indeed...

Oh, and almost forgot... Speaking of the Big Picture's beautiful photography from the previous post...

I think I failed to adequately emphasize just how much I 'appreciate' the job they did covering the Olympics... I believe these shots really do accentuate the point don't they ? Definitely breath-taking (in every sense of the word).

Can you tell I've added a new site as part of my long list of bookmarks for future reference ? What can I say... Just Beautiful...

(*sigh*)... Anyway, you can also check out a few of the shots I posted back during the Beijing Games here... And yes, summer of '08 Olympics, ye shall be missed...

Fabian Hambuechen: Über-hot Diving

Über hot? or super hot? Either way really makes no difference when it comes Germany's utterly breath-taking olympic silver medalist Fabian Hambuechen...

Did I say utterly breath-taking? I meant Just Beautiful ... Fabian perfectly represents the epitome of boyish good looks complemented by the body of a gymnast god... The guy might possibly be the hottest male gymnast currently active in the sport...

As you might recall, Fabian was a particular favorite of mine a couple months ago during the Beijing Olympics. I believe we visited him not once, but twice (If I remember correctly )...

And seeing as Fabian is in fact one of Germany's top national athletes, he does garner somewhat more of a celebrity status than we might be accustomed to regarding male gymnasts here in the US. Hence his recent appearance a couple days ago on the German television celebrity diving event, TV Total's Turmspringen 2008.

Darn you language barrier ... I know not what he's saying, but he sure looks hot saying it... You gotta love how those announcers were totally all over him throughout the broadcast. Very professional on their part... (not that I'm one to complain )...

Easily one of the hottest gymnast of the moment (even with the err... vertically challenged issue ). Look for him to be a pivotal player in the upcoming 2012 Olympics in London.

Diving Form

Argh, I'm still mildly annoyed at not having had the chance to post a couple of my favorite olympic shots from four years ago during this years Beijing games.... but... that shouldn't really stop me from posting them anyway should it?

Ok, fine, I don't really need an excuse to post gorgeous Olympic divers. Especially when they're two of my favorite iconic images from Athens. Australia's Robert Newberry and Canada's Alexandre Despatie showing absolutely perfect form.

Perfection?... "ah, wait, he separated his hands, that's gonna cost him a minor deduction... 9.9" ... (gotta love the apparent 'brilliance' of Olympic diving commentary ...)

A Spectacular Finish

Well, curtain has finally come down on the eastern spectacle (otherwise referred to as the Beijing Olympics). These games may have arguably gone down as the most over-the-top yet incredibly well managed Olympics in recent history. From the very opening itself, to countless new world records set both in swimming and track, to the triumphs and the painfully disappointing losses (especially for many of our top prospects here in the US).

Overall I think London will have a lot to live up to as the follow-up act to the show the Chinese put on these past weeks. I'm personally kinda bummed out at the fact that my time to post was taken up during this last week (of all the days really ). I kinda missed out posting some of the cool stuff I wanted to put up, but I guess that shouldn't really stop me from posting some nice athletic pics in the future ...

That being said, I very much look forward to the London games in four years... if anything the timezone proximity should do wonders in *preventing* the constant stream of event outcome spoilers we had to deal with in Bei . The world is coming to Great Britain... will they be ready? They better be .

Fabian Revisited...

Considering Fabian's bronze-worthy horizontal bar finish... and his current status (IMHO of course) as the hottest gymnast at the games this year, I figured he was worth another look.

...apparently from what I can tell in that second pic, Jonathan Horton seems to be sharing the same train of thought... (in my dreams maybe ). These shots are from Fabian's competition a few days ago in the Men's Gymnastics team finals in Beijing.

Granted there were a few stumbles here...

...and there ...

The Germans were in good form, but ultimately they failed to medal that day against the strong competition from the Americans and especially the Chinese. That being said, they'll be back four years from now with an older, wiser, and more experienced Fabian in the leadership position.

And considering the fact that Fabian is only 20, barring any unforeseen injuries we can probably expect to see him excelling in the sport well into the 2016 games (wherever those will be held)...

A new leader emerges?

A great smile the masks the facade of a fierce competitor... this Olympics Jonathan has jumped from a supporting role under the leadership of the Hamm twins, to taking the front and center position following their premature exit from the games.

And yes, following in the tradition of his predecessors Blaine Wilson and Paul Hamm, Jonathan holds his own in the looks category and as the team's powerhouse performer.

Just Beautiful...

The American team was pretty much counted out this year on account of the last minute changes and somewhat lack of predictable leadership. The fact that they managed a bronze given the circumstances in which they entered the games only makes one wonder how things might've been minus all the injuries.

Nevertheless a champion was indeed born... congrats Jonathan on a well deserved silver ... Personally I think it should've been gold, but that chapter's already closed. Jonathan will in all likelihood be leading the US team four years from now in London... I think it's safe to say, the prospects for success are already looking really good .