Swimming legend Michael Phelps suffered a nervy start in his bid for Olympic history Saturday as the London Games swung into full-blown action with China claiming the first gold medal.
Kazakh cyclist Alexandre Vinokourov shocked hosts Britain in the men’s road race, and tennis stars Roger Federer and Serena Williams made progress in the familiar surroundings of Wimbledon.
After Friday’s lavish opening ceremony, the 30th Games got down to serious business with competition in 19 sports, from the far-flung rowing lake of Eton Dorney and across east London’s Olympic Park.
In the pool, visited on Saturday by Queen Elizabeth II, Phelps needs just three medals to surpass Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina’s all-time career record of 18.
But the defending champion just scraped into Saturday’s 400m individual medley final by the skin of his teeth.
Phelps finished in 4min 13.33sec to grab the eighth and last spot in the final which takes place later Saturday, but sounded a defiant note afterwards despite his brush with disaster.
“A final spot is a final spot,” Phelps said, while acknowledging he had been caught cold.
“I didn’t expect those guys to go that fast. I just wanted to try to get some good underwater, try to get some good times.
“You can’t win the gold medal from the morning,” he added.
In a major drama at the Aquatics Centre, reigning Olympic champion Park Tae-Hwan of South Korea was disqualified in the 400m freestyle for a false start - before being reinstated hours later.
An appeal by the South Korean delegation was rejected by the competition referee, but world governing body FINA’s jury of appeal overturned the disqualification on the advice of the its technical commission.
No explanation was given for the sudden about-turn, which keeps Park on course for his long-awaited showdown with Chinese star Sun Yang in Saturday’s evening finals.
Chinese world number one shooter Yi Siling had the honour of claiming the first of the Games’ 302 golds at the Royal Artillery Barracks in the women’s 10m Air Rifle.
Yi defeated Poland’s Sylwia Bogacka, with Yu Dan of China taking bronze.
Defending champion Pang Wei could make it a China double in the men’s event later Saturday.
Russia’s Arsen Galstyan won the men’s under-60kg judo and Sarah Menezes took Brazil’s first Olympic gold in the sport, in the women’s under-48kg.
In the men’s cycling, Britain’s Tour de France heroes Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish were undone by a combination of tactical racing and some incisive, late attacks, finishing well off the podium.
South Korea enjoyed a golden start when sharpshooter Jin Jong-Oh won the Olympic men’s 10m air pistol gold medal at London’s Royal Artillery Barracks.
And New Zealand’s Hamish Bond and Eric Murray set the third world record of the Games in the men’s pairs rowing.
Wimbledon champion Federer, seeking singles gold to go with his 2008 doubles title - and 17 grand slams - survived a scare before beating Colombia’s Alejandro Falla in three sets.
Williams, cheered on by US First Lady Michelle Obama, crushed Jelena Jankovic 6-3, 6-1.
But US Open champion Samantha Stosur and Li Na, last year’s French Open winner, were both rolled out of the All England Club with defeats to Carla Suarez Navarro and Daniela Hantuchova respectively.