[Hyack]

Sergerie kicks to taekwondo silver

Karine Sergerie fought her way to Canada’s best-ever finish in taekwondo at the Olympic Games, winning silver in the -67 kilogram event on Day 14 of competition in Beijing.

The 23-year-old from Ste-Catherine, Que., lost a close gold-medal bout to the defending and reigning world champion, South Korea’s Kyungseon Hwang.

The bronze medallist at the 2004 Olympic Games, the South Korean beat Sergerie 2–1, scoring her final point in the last 30 seconds.

"Disappointed, very disappointed," said Sergerie after the bout. "It was really, close, I mean it was right there.

"In the end, I think I lacked a bit of energy and endurance mostly, it was so close I just had to squeeze her a little bit more and throw one last kick just to even it out and go to sudden death."

Sergerie scored the first point of the match on a defensive kick with less than 30 seconds to go in the first round. Her opponent equalized things in the second, scoring a point near the end of the round on an offensive kick.

In the third and final period, it looked as though the match might end in a tie and go to the judge's decision, but South Korea's competitor landed a defensive kick in the final seconds of the round. Sergerie was unable to score another point.

[Hyack]

Van Koeverden takes silver in the K-1 500

Adam van Koeverden won the silver medal in the K-1 500, finding some redemption after a dismal performance in the 1000 on Friday.

Heading into the Games, he was considered a medal favourite in this race because he was the defending Olympic and world champion, and had won all three races on the World Cup circuit this season.

But in the hours before the 500 final, there was some concern he wouldn't be in top form for the big race; he suffered a crushing defeat on Friday, finishing eighth in a field of nine paddlers in the 1000.

"I just didn't have it," a distraught van Koeverden told CBC Sports after that race. "It's a hell of a time not to have it. It's the worst 1000 metres I have put together in years."

Van Koeverden was one of the strongest medal contenders heading into that race. He won two gold medals and one bronze in three World Cup races this season. He also claimed the bronze in the 1000 at the 2004 Athens Games as well as three silvers (2003, 2005, 2007) at world championships.

[Hyack]

Cockburn to carry Canada's flag at closing ceremony

Trampolinist Karen Cockburn, who has won medals in three consecutive Olympics, will carry the Canadian flag into Sunday's closing ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Games.

Canadian chef de mission Sylvie Bernier made the announcement on CBC's Olympic Prime with Scott Russell.

Cockburn, of Stouffville, Ont., won silver in the trampoline event in Beijing to become the fifth Canadian in a non-team or non-relay event to win a medal in three straight Olympic Games.

She shares that distinction with Phil Edwards in track and field (1928, 1932 and 1936); rowing coxswain Leslie Thompson-Willie (1992, 1996, 2000); kayaker Caroline Brunet (1996, 2000, 2004) and diver Emilie Heymans (2000, 2004, 2008).

Cockburn, 27, previously won bronze in trampoline's debut at the 2000 Sydney Games and captured her first silver four years later in Athens.

In Beijing, the Canadian's silver medal capped a hard-fought comeback after she tore cartilage in her right knee in October while preparing for the 2007 world championship in Quebec City.

She had surgery shortly after the worlds and only returned to the trampoline earlier this year.

Cockburn said she was excited and overwhelmed that she had been chosen to carry the Maple Leaf flag into the National Stadium on Sunday (6:00 a.m. ET).

"It's a huge honour for me to be able represent Canada and our entire team because there's been so many great performances," Cockburn said. "I'm going to have a huge smile as I walk into the closing ceremony tonight [Sunday]."

Kayaker Adam van Koeverden carried the Canadian flag at the opening ceremony in Beijing just over two weeks ago.

[bootlegga]

Way to go athletes, you did us all proud!

[hurley_108]

Here's a final tally on the medals per capita:

Rank: Country (Total medals per hundred million people)
1: Bahamas (604.2)
2: Jamaica (405.3)
3: Iceland (316.2)
4: Slovenia (246.4)
5: Australia (215)
6: Cuba (213)
7: New Zealand (210.6)
8: Norway (209.3)
9: Armenia (199.9)
10: Belarus (196.1)
11: Mongolia (152.1)
12: Trinidad and Tobago (150)
13: Estonia (149.2)
14: Lithuania (148.8)
15: Georgia (136.5)
16: Latvia (132.3)
17: Bahrain (131.5)
18: Denmark (127.5)
19: Slovakia (111.1)
20: Croatia (109.8)
21: Hungary (99.6)
22: Netherlands (97.3)
23: Kazakhstan (84.3)
24: Azerbaijan (82.7)
25: Mauritius (79.2)
26: Switzerland (78.6)
27: Britain (77.6)
28: Finland (75.2)
29: Ireland (69.1)
30: Bulgaria (65.4)
31: South Korea (64.3)
32: France (62)
33: Ukraine (58.6)
34: Czech Republic (57.7)
35: Sweden (54.3)
36: Canada (54)
37: Russia (50.7)
38: Germany (49.9)
39: Italy (47)
40: Spain (39.1)
41: Kyrgyzstan (37.6)
42: Romania (37.3)
43: Kenya (37.3)
44: United States (36.1)
45: Austria (36)
46: Greece (35.9)
47: Serbia (30.4)
48: Zimbabwe (30)
49: Panama (29.9)
50: Tajikistan (29.7)
51: Moldova (26.4)
52: Poland (26.2)
53: North Korea (25.2)
54: Uzbekistan (21.9)
55: Singapore (21.8)
56: Dominican Republic (20.5)
57: Japan (19.6)
58: Belgium (18.9)
59: Portugal (18.8)
60: Chinese Taipei (17.4)
61: Togo (15.2)
62: Argentina (14.9)
63: Israel (13.7)
64: Turkey (11.3)
65: Tunisia (9.7)
66: Ethiopia (8.8)
67: Brazil (8)
68: China (7.5)
69: Ecuador (7.5)
70: Morocco (6.4)
71: Thailand (6.3)
72: Chile (6)
73: Algeria (5.9)
74: Cameroon (5.4)
75: Colombia (4.5)
76: Afghanistan (3.7)
77: Malaysia (3.7)
78: Venezuela (3.6)
79: Iran (2.8)
80: Mexico (2.8)
81: Nigeria (2.7)
82: Sudan (2.6)
83: Indonesia (2.2)
84: South Africa (2.1)
85: Egypt (1.3)
86: Vietnam (1.1)
87: India (0.3)

The bolded countries were top five in total medals.