GYMNASTICS Wilson dizzied, but U.S. surges to 2nd

ATHENS, Greece -- Blaine Wilson wound up the first day of his last Olympics feeling dizzy and nursing a giant headache. It got so bad, he needed smelling salts to finish the meet.
The top American gymnast of the past decade has been through worse, though, and after qualifying rounds Saturday, there's a growing sense that all the pain might be worth it.
Wilson, the stellar Paul Hamm and the rest of the Americans put in a solid performance, scoring 230.419 points to finish second, 1.715 points behind Japan. Romania finished third, and defending Olympic and world champion China was fourth, holding back its best routines for Monday's finals.
Prime position
Second place is a great position for the Americans, who are seeking their first Olympic team medal since the boycotted 1984 Games and have been building toward it since their fifth-place finish in Sydney four years ago.
Hamm led the way with four scores better than 9.7.
Still, the day was less than perfect.
The biggest mishap came on the high bar when Wilson flew backward and failed to grip the bar as he came down.
The result: "Bong," Wilson said.
The back of his head slammed hard on the mat. He scored an 8.862. Doctors cleared him to continue, although afterward he admitted he couldn't remember much else from immediately before or after the fall.
"Put it this way," Wilson said, "when you want to puke, it's not good."
Recovery
Moments after the fall, he went to the floor exercise and executed it beautifully, gluing his feet to the mat on all three big tumbling passes to score a 9.7 before heading off to get a cold towel around his neck. Wilson followed with a 9.625 on the rings. He also scored a 9.512 on vault, and when it was all over, he sounded like a guy who needed a break.
The Russians struggled, getting only three routines from reigning Olympic all-around champion Alexi Nemov to wind up sixth.
The finals are expected to come down to China, the United States and Japan, the teams that finished first, second and third, respectively, in last year's world championships.
Associated Press