Olympians

The Sun's coverage of the Olympics has been disappointing. The reporting of the successes of our American athletes was scant and located deep inside the sports section. However, on the front page of the FEb. 26 edition a photograph shows Canada's women's hockey team celebrating their gold medal win and a photograph showing America's dejected teat with the headline: "U.S. women come up short." Considering the outstanding performances of our Olympic teams, they deserved better. Martha K. Haas Send letters to the editor to talkback@baltimoresun.

Michael Phelps' latest love interest is 22-year-old Sarah Herndon, according to an interview with the waitress/model from California (the same description as his previous flame, Megan Rossee, whom he dumped just after Christmas). He and Herndon met in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, just before Christmas; fished for lobster in the Bahamas after the holidays and had an evening of sushi and "Zero Dark Thirty" back in Baltimore. Here's a report. By Hugo Daniel For Coleman-Rayner Michael Phelps charmed his latest love interest on a romantic lobster fishing trip - jumping into the water and joking, "This is my home, too, you know.” Sarah Herndon was whisked to the Bahamas by the Oympic champion for a romantic five-day break of fishing, snorkeling and tropical sunsets.

Michael Phelps, who reportedly spent time recently in Las Vegas to celebrate his retirement from swimming, will be honored downtown along with fellow 2012 Olympians and Paralympians by the state, the city and Baltimore County on Monday. Gov. Martin O'Malley, Baltimore County executive Kevin Kamenetz and Baltimore City mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake will host the event at 4 p.m. at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater at Pratt and Light streets. Fans are invited to attend to help welcome back and to celebrate the achievements of Maryland's 2012 Olympians and Paralympians.

Baltimore native and superstar Olympian Michael Phelps has dumped model-waitress Megan Rossee, according to TMZ . The gossip site cited anonymous sources who said that Phelps "felt the relationship wasn't going anywhere, so he decided to end it so he could pursue other options. " The two first appeared in public as a couple during the London Olympics. Phelps played (consolation?) beer pong Saturday evening with Stacy Keibler in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, according to Keibler's Instagram feed.

Scott Parsons, of Bethesda, failed to advance from the qualifying run of the single kayak event Sunday at the Lee Valley Whitewater Centre. Parsons, a three-time Olympian, placed 16th with a score of 94.16, which left him 1.59 seconds shy of advancing along with the top 15. He was 10.91 off the pace of Germany's Hannes Aigner, who placed first with a 83.49 on his second run. Casey Eichfeld -- who is from Drums, Pa., but worked at the Adventure Sports...

Swimming 5 Olympians to appear at Kimmel Center Olympic swimmers Craig Beardsley , Janel Jorgensen , Brenda Borgh Bartlett , Alex Meyers and Patrick Kennedy will visit patients at the Pediatric Oncology Unit at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at 4p.m. Saturday on the eve of Swim Across America's second annual fundraiser in the Baltimore area. The Olympians will meet with patients and learn more about the research being conducted at the Swim Across America Lab at the center.

After Michael Phelps won his record-breaking 19th Olympic medal last night, London Games chief Sebastian Coe said that the Baltimore swimmer " probably isn't " the greatest Olympian of all time. Phelps passed Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina's 18 medals Tuesday night after the United States won gold in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay. “I think you can say it is self-evident that he is the most successful. I am not sure he is the greatest,” Coe said. "It is a pretty good haul, but who is the greatest?

Matt Centrowitz Sr. does not recall ever sitting down with his son Matthew to regale him with tales of being an Olympian, or to explain the thrill and responsibility of representing the United States on the world's most-watched athletic stage. They never needed that sort of session. Running, and doing so at the highest levels, was a constant currency in the Centrowitz house, one that streamed through everything. Matthew never had to ask about the Olympics; the men his father spoke to, who came to family gatherings, who were at the other end of vacation trips, so many of them had been there.

Five Olympian riders who fell short of gold in Barcelona, Spain, will try to win top honors in the $30,000 American Cafe Columbia Classic Grand Prix next month at Howard Community College.Lisa Jacquin and Michael Matz, Olympians from Collegeville, Pa., will compete in the horse jumping show. Matz is one of the all-time leading money winners on the Grand Prix circuit.Other Olympians participating include Anne Kursinski (Flemington, N.J.), Tim Grubb (Great Britain) and Harold Chopping (Canada)

PITTSBURGH -- From the standpoint of defense, this free-skating free-for-all was more an All-Star Game than the opener of the playoff series that will bring one team the first Stanley Cup in 23 seasons of franchise history.From the standpoint of brilliant play by brilliant centers, though, the Minnesota North Stars' stars shined just a bit brighter than the Pittsburgh Penguins' did last night -- with Neal Broten scoring twice and hoisting his Minnesota upstarts another step closer to the second Miracle on Ice of his lifetime.

For years, archery has been a part of Westminster resident Vicki Clem's life. But Clem, 71, who taught French in the Howard County public school system for 39 years, got started back in 1981, in a somewhat back-handed way - she simply got tired of watching other people compete on the archery range. "My son and ex-husband had gotten into archery, and I used to take my son up to the Mayberry Archers, here in Westminster, to compete," said Clem, whose son, Tony, now lives in Colorado and competes in professional archery competitions.

It appears that the world's most decorated Olympian has moved into a stylish loft just steps from one of Baltimore's liveliest locales. Though Swimmer Michael Phelps has not confirmed details about his new abode, it seems to be an open secret among Canton's locals that Phelps is living in a million-dollar compound on South Curley Street. The amalgam of red brick buildings that neighbors say Phelps has called home since before the London Olympics is just off O'Donnell Square, a park ringed by bars and restaurants.

Arriving aboard the Pride of Baltimore II and hailed by a cannon blast from the Constellation, Michael Phelps and Maryland's other Olympic athletes were celebrated in true local style Monday afternoon by elected officials and an Inner Harbor crowd. "I hope that you cherish this honor as part of your memories of this summer, and as a reminder that you will always have a home - let me say that one more time, especially for Mr. Phelps - you will always have a home here in Baltimore," said Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake as she gave keys to the city to the famously Las Vegas-loving swimmer and the other Olympic athletes.

Ever since the two appeared arm in arm on the red carpet at the London Olympics, people have wondered: Who, exactly, is Michael Phelps' new girlfriend? She hasn't been talking with the news media until now. But in an exclusive interview with The Sun, Megan Rossee seems sporty, competitive and quick to laugh at herself. And, yes, she's also a willowy blond model who loves shoes, sweets and marathon viewings of "Sex and the City. " Though it's been widely reported in the media that Rossee is a cocktail waitress, that makes her laugh because she says she worked at Hollywood's Blok nightclub for only about a month to help pay the bills.

Michael Phelps and other Olympic athletes from Maryland will be honored at a celebration Monday afternoon at the Inner Harbor, after which the swimmer will be named an honorary captain of the Ravens at the team's season opener. Gov. Martin O'Malley, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz will speak at a roughly hourlong celebration at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater at Light and Pratt streets that will start at 4 p.m. Phelps, who became the most decorated Olympian of all time in London, his fourth and final Games, will speak as well.

Michael Phelps, who reportedly spent time recently in Las Vegas to celebrate his retirement from swimming, will be honored downtown along with fellow 2012 Olympians and Paralympians by the state, the city and Baltimore County on Monday. Gov. Martin O'Malley, Baltimore County executive Kevin Kamenetz and Baltimore City mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake will host the event at 4 p.m. at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater at Pratt and Light streets. Fans are invited to attend to help welcome back and to celebrate the achievements of Maryland's 2012 Olympians and Paralympians.

Special Olympics athletes from across Baltimore dribbled, shot and scored at the citywide Special Olympics Adult Basketball Championships last Monday. Nearly 80 adult Special Olympians competed in three events: basketball skills, which tested passing, dribbling and shooting; a 3-on-3 basketball game; and a 3-on-3 game that paired Olympians and their mentors. About 50 Coppin State University students volunteered and cheered on the athletes in the school's third year hosting the championships.

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - After the globe hopping. After the rush of competition. After the cheering has stopped. What happens to the men and women who make up the U.S. Olympic team? "You put your life on hold to pursue a dream," says hockey player A.J. Mleczko, 29. "All of my peers have at least five years of post-college experience. I don't know if what I'm doing qualifies me for anything." And that's from a woman with a gold medal from the 1998 Winter Games, the likelihood of another one next month and a degree in U.S. history from Harvard University.

A gold-medal-winning Olympic swimmer is going to be appearing this weekend at the Maryland State Fair. No, sigh, it's not Michael Phelps. It's Matt Grevers, who's no slouch when it comes to prowess in the pool. And hey, let's face it, Phelps would be mobbed. With Grevers, you've got an excellent chance at face-time with a certified champion -- he won two golds in London, in the 100-meter backstroke and the 400-meter medley relay. And Grevers won't be the only Olympian at the fair.

As a plodding lap swimmer at Meadowbrook, the Mt. Washington pool where Michael Phelps has trained for almost two decades, I've been watching the phenom swimmer at close range since he was 14 or so. In that time, I've witnessed - along with scores of other equally mesmerized members of the pool - Mr. Phelps' metamorphosis, from gangly and at times ornery adolescent, to incredibly focused young man, to star-studded jocular veteran of the sport, to...