LONDON (AP) -- Americans showcased their medal power in the swimming pool at the Olympics.
Seventeen-year-old Missy Franklin earned her first Olympic gold medal by winning the women's 100-meter backstroke. Franklin covered the distance in 58.33 seconds just 10 minutes after earning the eighth and final spot in the 200-meter freestyle final.
American teammate Matt Grevers (GREE'-vurz) made it a backstroke sweep for the U.S. with an Olympic record time of 52.16 seconds in the men's 100-meters. That was 38-hundreths of a second faster than the old mark set by American Aaron Peirsol (PEER'-sahl) at the Beijing Olympics four years ago. The U.S. earned a 1-2 finish in the event with Nick Thoman winning the silver medal.
Rebecca Soni missed a gold medal in the women's 100-meter breaststroke by eight-hundredths of a second. The world champion had to settle for silver.
On the other hand, world champion Ryan Lochte was shut out of the medals in the 200-meter freestyle, finishing a disappointing fourth. The gold went to France's Yannick Agnel, who finished more than a second and a half in ahead of the competition.
(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
