BEIJING — On a hot, hazy morning, the U.S. softball team sweated like never before.

This seemingly unbeatable team that produced one rout after another as if off an assembly line was pushed to the edge today — a 4-1 victory over Japan that went to extra innings.

The Americans scored four runs in the ninth, with Crystl Bustos hitting a three-run homer. The victory extended the Americans’ Olympic winning streak to 22 in a sport that won’t be back for the 2012 London Games and whose future is uncertain.

Now, the U.S. (8-0) is one victory shy of a fourth consecutive gold medal, and Japan will be back for that game Thursday. The Japanese beat Australia 4-3 in 12 innings later today to advance to the gold-medal game. Australia got the bronze.

In Japan’s game against the United States, the score was tied after seven innings, forcing the international tiebreaker in the eighth in which teams begin their at-bats with a runner at second.

Despite having first base open, Japan pitched to Bustos. Softball’s most fearsome hitter responded with her fifth homer of these games, nearly sending the ball out of the stadium.

Monica Abbott pitched eight shutout innings for the U.S. Behind Abbott, the U.S. team had beaten Japan 7-0 in round-robin play. That game was one of five shortened games by the Americans in the preliminaries.

In beach volleyball, U.S. men Todd Rogers and Phil Dalhausser earned a trip to the gold-medal match by beating a duo from Georgia. They’ll play a Brazilian tandem Friday. Also, BMX cycling made its Olympic debut, with all four Americans advancing. Mike Day won the time trial in each of his heats, while Kyle Bennett dislocated his left shoulder but is expected to be OK.

A day earlier, Americans got another glimpse on the podium of gymnasts Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin and an introduction to freestyle gold medalist wrestler Henry Cejudo.

The son of illegal immigrants from Mexico, Cejudo was 4 when he last saw his dad. His mom raised six kids and often struggled to make ends meet. The family moved more times than anyone remembers.

He became a national champ at 17, then defied conventional wisdom by blowing off college to study nothing but wrestling. Now he’s the world’s best in the 55-kilogram division, the youngest American ever to win an Olympic wrestling gold medal.

“Anybody can do it,” he said. “It’s just a matter of seeing it, believing it and just working at it, and achieving it.”

Cejudo’s gold and Johnson and Liukin finishing 1-2 in the balance beam were among the highlights for the U.S. delegation at the Olympics on Tuesday.

With 215 of the 302 medals decided, the United States was atop the medals table with 81. Check out the distribution: 26 gold, 27 silver and 28 bronze. Talk about diversity.

China is close behind with 79 total medals, but 45 of them are gold, including windsurfer Yin Jian winning the nation’s first-ever sailing gold medal today by winning the women’s RS:X class. Russia is the only other delegation besides the U.S. with as many medals of any color as China has of the very best. The Russians have 13 gold, 14 silver and 18 bronze for 45 total medals, matching China’s 45 golds.

The first of 11 medals up for grabs today was the women’s 10-kilometer open-water swim. The event, making its Olympic debut, was won by Russia’s Larisa Ilchenko in 1 hour, 59 minutes, 27.7 seconds.

She was followed by Britons Keri-Anne Payne and Cassandra Patten. Natalie du Toit, the South African amputee who removed her prosthetic left leg before diving in, finished 16th.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan got its first-ever Olympic medal today.

“I hope this will send a message of peace to my country after 30 years of war,” Rohullah Nikpai said after winning the bronze in the men’s under 58-kilogram taekwondo event.



Not that there was much doubt, but the U.S. women are headed back to the Final Four of this tournament.

Sylvia Fowles had 26 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Americans on their latest rout, a 104-60 victory over South Korea. The Americans have made the medal round in every Olympics they’ve entered, and have won 31 straight games since losing in the 1992 semifinals.

The Americans will play Becky Hammon and Russia in the semifinals Thursday night. Russia rallied to beat Spain 84-65 Tuesday night. China plays Australia in the other semifinal.

The Aussies advanced with a 79-46 victory over the Czech Republic. China moved on with a 77-62 victory over Belarus. It’s the first time the Chinese are in the medal round since taking silver in 1992.



Despite losing its opener, losing one key player to a gruesome injury and seeing another key player get hurt, the U.S. is headed to the medal round.

The Americans advanced with a 4-2 victory over Taiwan, powered by John Gall’s go-ahead homer and a solid outing by pitcher Brandon Knight. The final prelim test comes today against medal favorite Japan. The semifinals start Friday.

South Korea and Cuba are advancing, too. Those teams squared off in a battle of unbeatens, and South Korea won 7-4.

“Since we beat the U.S. in our opener, the good luck has stayed with us so far,” South Korea manager Kim Kyung-moon said.

Also, Canada beat the Netherlands 4-0 and Japan beat China 10-0.



The final is set: Argentina vs. Nigeria.

Argentina is headed back to the Olympic final with the chance to become the first nation in 40 years to defend its title — and to avenge a loss to Nigeria in the 1996 finals.

Sergio Aguero scored goals six minutes apart in the second half and later set up another to lead Argentina past Brazil 3-0. Nigeria advanced with a 4-1 victory over Belgium that included two goals from long distance.



Germany’s Matthias Steiner won the men’s super heavyweight division, getting gold and the right to call himself the world’s strongest man.

At the medal ceremony, Steiner held up a picture of his wife, Susann, who died in a car accident last year.

“I thought of her before the competition,” he said. “I won this for her, for friends and family. But mostly for her.”

Steiner lifted a total of 461 kilograms (1,016.3 pounds), clinching the win with a clean and jerk of 258 kg (568.8 pounds).



This wasn’t Olympic cycling. It was the British Open.

With Victoria Pendleton winning the women’s track sprint and Chris Hoy taking the men’s version, the Brits won seven events and 12 medals in cycling, with Hoy claiming three golds.

They were favored to also win the men’s madison, but Argentina took it.

The Americans? Not a single medal in the five-day competition. Just like in Athens. It ended with Michael Friedman and Bobby Lea 16th in the Madison, and Jennie Reed seventh in the women’s sprint 5th-8th placement race.



After a slow start, the U.S. took down Italy in five sets to advance to a semifinal matchup with undefeated Cuba.

Afterward, the team celebrated with abandon. Ogonna Nnamani was joined by her teammate in a dance. They chanted “U-U-U-U-U-S-A!” And, of course, there were hugs all around.

Brazil plays defending champion China in the other semifinal on Thursday.



The U.S. will be playing for gold, taking on the Netherlands on Thursday, but will do so without center forward Lauren Wenger.

Wenger, the team’s most versatile player, broke her right hand in the closing minutes of a 9-8 semifinal victory over Australia. Brenda Villa scored three goals, including the winner with a minute left.

The U.S. is guaranteed to keep alive its streak of winning a medal at every Olympics that has included women’s water polo. The Americans won silver in 2000 and bronze in 2004.

The Dutch advanced by upsetting Hungary 8-7 in the other semifinal.



Rami Zur left Athens with a broken neck because of a freak pool accident. He might leave Beijing with two medals.

Zur has reached the semifinals of two kayak single (K-1) events. His berth in the 500 meters was secured a day after making it in the 1,000 meters. Carrie Johnson advanced to the women’s semis, giving the U.S. hope of returning to the Olympic flatwater medal stand for the first time since 1992.

Also, Canadian kayaker Adam van Koeverden set a world-best time in the 500-meter kayak single in a qualifying heat. Van Koeverden, who carried Canada’s flag at the opening ceremony, is the defending Olympic champion in the 500.



Get ready for a rumble.

Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor — the winners of 107 straight matches, including the last Olympic title — are headed to the finals against the Chinese duo of Tian Jia and Wang Jie.

The Americans easily beat a Brazilian tandem in the semifinals. Tian and Wang advanced by beating another team from China.

The United States has now reached the podium in all four Olympics since beach volleyball was added to the games in 1996.

“I think they are going to be the Olympic champions, for sure,” said Renata, part of the Brazilian team defeated by the Americans.



Germany’s Jan Frodeno, who was seventh at last year’s world championship, worked his way past a pack of foes with more glittering resumes and won the gold medal. The top American was Hunter Kemper, who finished seventh.

Jarrod Shoemaker was 18th, Matty Reed 32nd. Reed’s brother, Shane, competes for New Zealand and was 34th.



A light heavyweight from Tajikistan was disqualified for biting his opponent on the shoulder — and Evander Holyfield, boxing’s most famous biting victim, just missed seeing it.

Holyfield was at the arena for much of the evening card, but apparently was gone when Dzhakhon Kurbanov chomped on Kazakhstan’s Yerkebulan Shynaliyev during a clinch, drawing blood.

Also, China clinched at least four medals after managing just one at all previous Olympics.

Lightweight Alexey Tishchenko, one of three Russians left after their powerful team’s collapse, stayed in contention with a victory. He won the featherweight gold in Athens before moving up in class two years ago.



The U.S. got its first gold from the regatta when British-born Anna Tunnicliffe won the women’s Laser Radial class. China’s Xu Lijia got bronze, marking the third sailing medal for the hosts.

Britain got its third gold in sailing when Paul Goodison won the men’s Laser.

Also, a jury rejected yet another protest about the 49er class gold medal that went to Denmark in a boat borrowed from Croatia. Spain, which would’ve moved from silver to gold if the Danes were disqualified, said they saw the markings for Croatia and didn’t realize it was really the Danes.



The Russian synchronized swimming duo of Anastasia Davydova and Anastasia Ermakova has repeated as Olympic champions.

Performing a perfect free routine to the classic Peer Gynt Suite at the Water Cube on Wednesday, Davydova and Ermakova won with a combined 99.251 points. The pair received all perfect 10s for technical merit.

Gemma Mengual and Andrea Fuentes of Spain took the silver medal with 98.334 points and Saho Harada and Emiko Suzuki of Japan earned the bronze with 97.167.



Anky van Grunsven of the Netherlands won her third straight gold in individual dressage.