I first saw

Todd Rogers

I was captivated by the pair, Rogers a no-nonsense warrior and Dalhausser a 6-foot-9 athletic freak. I remember thinking "This is the perfect team. Who in the world can beat these guys?"

Now I know. Nobody.

Rogers and Dalhausser won gold in men's beach volleyball at the Beijing Games, dispatching a similarly sized Brazil duo 23-21, 17-21, 15-4.

I loved watching these two play. Rogers, 34, is the brains of the operation who still is on top of his game (they call him The Professor). Dalhausser, 28, is the pupil but full of tremendous ability to go with an imposing frame. In the decisive third set, he owned the match with five blocks that killed the Brazilians' chances.

It was also interesting to watch the relationship between Rogers and Dalhausser, which was clearly mentor-protege (as opposed to gold-winning women

Misty May-Treanor

Of course, after Dalhausser stuffed Brazil's last gasp, securing the gold, he ran over to Rogers and tackled him to the sand, the two of them screaming in joy.

Any possible animosity was nowhere to be found this time. A gold medal has that power.

BEIJING (Aug. 11, 2008) – The United States Olympic  Committee is extremely pleased to announce that the condition of Mrs. Barbara  Bachman has been upgraded from critical to serious but stable.

    OPEN LETTER FROM HUGH & ELISABETH McCUTCHEON

  During this tremendously difficult time, we have been blessed to be  surrounded by a tremendous support system of caring individuals and  organizations. We are extremely grateful for the outpouring of assistance and  generosity that we have received and hope to convey our appreciation to  everyone who has supported us and kept us in their thoughts and prayers.

  The long list of people who have offered their assistance, kind words and  prayers to us has been incredible. This letter cannot do justice in  acknowledging the love and support we’ve felt. However, to begin with, we’d  like to express our deep gratitude to the following:

  First, we’d like to thank our family and friends, who have been ceaseless in  sending their prayers and love to our families. 

We’d like to thank the talented and caring staff and physicians at the local  hospital that is working around the clock to attend to the recovery of our Mom. 

We’d also like to express our gratitude to the officials from the Chinese  Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Mayor of Beijing, and their staff members who  have been with us here at the hospital.

  We’d like to thank President Bush and Ambassador Randt for their kind words  and strength. We also thank the U.S. Embassy and its staff for everything  they’ve done.

  We’d like to thank the USA Volleyball family for their never-ending support.  It is a close-knit family that is close to our hearts and close to the hearts  of our parents, Todd and Barbara.

We’d like to thank the United States Olympic Committee for their immediate  assistance and willingness to attend to all of our needs, and for being with us  here at the hospital throughout.  

We’d like to thank the generous sponsors who have made their resources  available to us without question, specifically Johnson & Johnson.  

We’d like to thank the FIVB for its flexibility and support of our coaches  and athletes.  

We’d like to thank the International Olympic Committee and the Beijing  Organizing Committee for their support throughout this tragedy.  

And finally, we’d like to thank everyone who has kept our families in their  thoughts and prayers throughout our difficult time.

We send a special thank you  to the people of Beijing, the people of New Zealand, and of course, the people of America. We  have been lifted up by the outpouring of support and love we’ve received from  around the world.  

Hugh and Elisabeth McCutcheon

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The U.S. Men’s National Volleyball Team  won its first FIVB World League title on Sunday by taking as 3-1 (26-24, 23-25,  25-23, 25-22) victory over Serbia in the gold medal match before a crowd of  5,700 at Maracanazinho Gymnasium in Rio de Janeiro.

The U.S. Men, ranked third in the world, finish World League with a record  of 12-4. Serbia, tied for  eighth in the world with Puerto Rico, finishes  second at 10-6. Russia  defeated host Brazil,  the five-time defending World League champion, 3-1 (25-23, 25-19, 23-25, 25-19)  to take the bronze medal.

Team USA  won $1 million for the overall tournament victory. Its previous best World  League finishes were bronze medals in 1992 and 2007. All four teams in the  medal matches will play next at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The men’s tournament begin on Aug.  10.

U.S. setter Lloy Ball (Fort Wayne, Ind.)  was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player and also Best Setter. Rich  Lambourne (Tustin, Calif.) won the award for Best Libero for  the second year in a row.

Reid Priddy (Richmond, Va.) led the U.S. Men on Sunday with 21  points on 18 kills and three blocks. Clay Stanley (Honolulu, Hawai’i)  added 16 points on 12 kills – including the final three points of the match –  three blocks and one ace. Riley Salmon (League    City, Texas) scored  13 points on 12 kills and one ace.

Among other U.S. scorers,  Ryan Millar (Palmdale, Calif.) scored 10 points on seven kills, two  blocks and one ace. David Lee (Alpine, Calif.)  added nine points on seven kills and two blocks. Gabe Gardner (San Clemente, Calif.)  scored four points on four kills and Ball had three points on two kills and one  ace.