I honestly don’t know how his mother manages to sit in the stands and watch without getting sick, especially through races like last night when he won the 7th medal by .01 seconds. I assume you all saw when she put up two fingers after the end, assuming he had finished second, only to sink down in shock after seeing the places go up on the board with Phelps in first. She’s probably so glad it’s over!

It’s really an honor to even get to see this piece of sports history. I keep thinking it will never be broken, but I’m sure people thought that about Mark Spitz when he set the original record. It’s just hard to imagine that someone could ever win NINE gold medals. And the overall medal count— 16— is pretty impressive, as well. And I would imagine Phelps will add more medals to that in London in 2012.

So, once again, Michael Phelps set yet another Olympic record tonight. 8 for 8 in ‘08!

I do find it interesting that even though the media is obssessed with Michael Phelps getting eight gold medals, this is NOT Michael Phelps’ goal. It is very difficult, though, to not want him to set that record.

Next up, the women swam the 100m backstroke. Again, the Americans brought home multiple medals. Natalie Coughlin became the first woman to successfully defend the gold in the 100m backstroke. Fellow American Margaret Hoelzer brought home the bronze.

Aaron Peirsol also successfully defended his gold medal in the 100m backstroke, setting a new world record. Matt Grevers won the silver. If Aaron Peirsol was as tall as Matt Grevers he could probably swim that race about 5 seconds faster. Matt Grevers just towers over him. They were very happy to come in first and second.

The last final of the night (morning in Beijing) was the women’s 100m breaststroke. Olympic newcomer Rebecca Soni had a strong showing and won the silver medal.

So, as usual, the United States swim team is representing their country marvelously. Tomorrow there will be more opportunities for American gold medals in the women’s 200m freestyle, men’s 200m butterfly (a chance for Michael Phelps to get that 10th gold medal), women’s 200m individual medley and men’s 4×200m freestyle relay.

And in case you still haven’t seen the race, you can see it here.

MSNBC is broadcasting a full day tomorrow, as well, including women’s tennis, women’s handball, women’s basketball, women’s water polo and women’s volleyball. (Incidentally, U.S. women’s water polo is pursuing their third straight Olympic gold medal.) Men’s badminton (where U.S. competitor Raju Rai may actually have a chance), weightlifting and men’s archery are also available for viewing.

CNBC will be showing men’s beach volleyball, boxing, and women’s softball.

USA is broadcasting women’s beach volleyball, rowing, men’s tennis (featuring Wimbledon champion Rafael Nedal), women’s basketball, and women’s volleyball.

Oxygen will be covering gymnastics and equestrian.

Online, you can see archery, badminton, basketball, fencing, handball, field hockey, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, softball, tennis, water polo, weightlifting, and wrestling.

And on top of all of that, it was the last major hurdle standing between Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz’s record. He is now predicted to win the rest of his races, so, hopefully, by the end of this Olympics there will be a new record for most gold medals in any one Olympics. And, almost certainly, Michael Phelps will own the most gold medals ever won by one individual.

If he can win 7 more golds during the Beijing Olympics, he’ll beat Mark Spitz’s record of 7 gold medals in one Olympics, which was set in 1972. He only needs three more gold medals to hold the record for most gold medals by an Olympian.

Here’s the video of his gold medal swim, in case you missed it.

1. Michael Phelps— Could potentially be one of the biggest stories of the China Olympics. Will he break Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals in one Olympics? Will he tie his own record of eight medals (6 gold, 2 bronze) that he set at the Athens Olympics in 2004?

2. Shawn Johnson— She just might join the ranks of other women’s gymnastic greats Mary Lou Retton and Carly Patterson, who won all-around championships at the Olympics. At 16, she is the reigning world all-around champion.

3. Dara Torres— Dara hopes to increase the oldest age of the oldest gold medalist in swimming from 33 to 41 (she set the previous record at the Sydney Olympics). She also hopes to add to her current 9 Olympic medals.

4. The Lopez Family— Steven, Mark and Diana Lopez are siblings from Sugarland, Texas who will all be competing in TaeKwondo at the Summer Olympics. Even more amazing, they’re coached by older brother Jean. They are the first three siblings since 1904 to make an Olympic team. Since they won’t be competing against each other, they could conceivably bring home three gold medals.

5. Allyson Felix— The 22 year old track and field darling will be going for three gold medals. In the current climate of track and field, where the sport is reeling from recent performance-enhancing drug scandals, Felix has signed up for the enhanced testing program to prove that she is running clean.

6. Sheila Taormina— Sheila Taormina has already set a record before she even competes in Beijing. She’s the first woman to compete in four Olympics in three different sports. At this summer’s China Olympics, she’ll be competing in modern pentathlon. Previously, she has competed in swimming and triathlon. In 1996, she won a gold medal as part of the women’s 4×200 relay team. Taormina, age 39, will be joined on the U.S. Women’s Pentathlon team by teenage phenom Margaux Isaksen, who is only 16.

7. U.S. Women’s Softball Team— The U.S. Women’s Softball team, including several familiar faces from former Olympic teams, will be going for its fourth consecutive gold medal. Team member Laura Berg was on each of the previous winning teams and hopes to add to her collection of gold medals.

8. Lopez Lomong— You MUST visit his website. Lomong has an unbelievably inspiring story. A former “lost boy” of the Sudan, Lomong escaped from the Sudan and was relocated to the United States where he attended Northern Arizon University and began running track. Lomong will compete in the 1,500 m race in Beijing.

9. Laura Wilkinson— Laura Wilkinson is one of the United States’ best chances for gold in platform diving. After winning the gold in Sydney, Wilkinson was disappointed with a fifth place finish in Athens. However, she easily made the 2008 team and is looking really strong. Although she will be quite a bit older than many of the other competitors, she is working on some extremely complex dives and plans to go out with a bang at the Beijing Olympics. She will be retiring after the Games.

10. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh— They’ll be seeking to win the first back-to-back gold medals in beach volleyball. They’re coming into the Olympics with a 101-match winning streak and have won 18 tournaments in a row.

Had he not made the Olympics, Eric would immediately have gone home and had surgery. But when he qualified for the Beijing Olympics in the 200-meter breaststroke, he faced a difficult decision. Fight on for his Olympic dreams or start the fight of his life. After doctors cleared him to compete as long as he is frequently checked to make sure the cancer hasn’t spread, Eric chose to continue his preparations for Beijing.

We wish Eric best wishes in his quest for the gold and with his health.

In the sad category, Cuban cyclist Pedro Pablo Perez is in a coma following a car accident on Monday. He will miss the Olympics. The Beijing Olympics would have been his second Olympics. Hopefully, he will have a full recovery and have an opportunity to compete again sometime in the future.

In the odd category, the only female Afghanistan athlete slated to compete at the Beijing Olympics disappeared from a training camp in Italy earlier this week. Because Mehboba Ahdyar, a 19-year-old runner who competes in the 800 meters and 1,500 meters, took her bags with her, she was thought to have left on her own. Most recent reports say she may be seeking asylum in Norway. Prior to disappearing, she had undergone harassment and threats from the Taliban.

German swimmer Vipa Bernhardt finished third in the 200-meter breaststroke and failed to qualify to compete in this summer’s Olympics, but she is protesting that the second place finisher competed for an American club. Both swimmers competed for American universities.

So, that’s the international headlines that stood out to me this week.

The men representing the United States are Michael Phelps, Larsen Jensen, Brendan Hansen, Peter Vanderkaay, Ricky Berens, Klete Keller, Aaron Peirsol, Scott Spann, Garrett Weber-Gale, Jason Lezak, Cullen Jones, Nathan Adrian, Ryan Lochte, Mark Gangloff, Matt Grevers, Gil Stovall, Eric Shanteau, Ian Crocker, Ben Wildman-Tobriner, Erik Vendt, David Walters and Mark Warkentin.

Swimming in the women’s events are Natalie Coughlin, Katie Hoff, Christine Magnuson, Jessica Hardy, Allison Schmitt, Julia Smit, Caroline Burckle, Elaine Breeden, Kathleen Hersey, Elizabeth Beisel, Margaret Hoelzer, Megan Jendrick, Kate Ziegler, Rebecca Soni, Amanda Beard, Dara Torres, Lacey Nymeyer, Kim Vandenberg, Christine Marshall, Emily Silver and Chloe Sutton.

Michael Phelps is no stranger, and he’s definitely on to watch, as he will be trying to break Mark Spitz’s Olympic record of seven gold medals. 41 year old Dara Torres is turning heads as the oldest woman in the pool. She’ll be competing in her fifth Olympics. That means she’s been competing at the Olympics since before I could drive a car— wow! These are only two of the many swimmers we’ll come to know better over the coming weeks and during the Beijing Olympics. I’m looking forward to seeing which of the many athletes competing will become household names.