OLYMPICS DAY 7 - live coverage (From Streatham Guardian)

6:49pm

Britain's cyclists brought home gold and smashed another world record as they became the first riders to defend the men's team pursuit title in 36 years tonight.

The quartet of Ed Clancy, Geraint Thomas, Steven Burke and Peter Kennaugh raced to victory at the velodrome, spurred on by deafening cheers from the crowd.

Fans in the packed stadium, including Britain's gold medallist Philip Hindes, were on their feet from the off as Team GB beat Australia to gold in three minutes 51.659 seconds.

Five-time Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy tweeted: "GO GO GO GO!!!!!!!

"They're going to do it!!!!!!!!

"WORLD RECORD 3.51.6!!!!!!

"Bloody brilliant @Ed_Clancy @Petekennaugh @StevenBurke88 @GeraintThomas86 you're all legends. Must be mixed emotions @tennanto chin up mate"
 

6:08pm

Victoria Pendleton wins her keirin semi-final

6:06pm

5:59pm

Cyclists Dani King, Laura Trott and Jo Rowsell set a new world record in qualifying for the women's team pursuit at the velodrome.
 

5:56pm

Very busy at Stratford underground right now. But the crowds are moving and the banter is good. 

5:53pm

Great Britain midfielder Ashley Jackson inspired his side to a comfortable victory over Pakistan with a performance befitting his stature as one of the world's top players.

The 24-year-old was at the heart of almost everything as the hosts rediscovered their attacking flair, contributing two second-half goals to ensure there was no repeat of their late capitulation against South Africa.

Coach Jason Lee had criticised his players for their lacklustre approach in Wednesday's 2-2 draw - where they conceded two late goals and salvaged a point even later - but there was no repeat this time around.

It took only four minutes for them to make their mark when Jackson's run into the right side of the circle allowed Jonty Clarke to cross and while the diving Iain McKay missed, James Tindall was on hand to convert on his reverse-stick.

Jackson had a penalty corner saved on the line by Rashid Mahmood and while Great Britain could not take advantage when Pakistan were briefly reduced to nine men - confusion reigning as they were apparently punished for having too many players on the field - they gave themselves a cushion just before the interval.

In a superb passage of play, Jackson picked out Nick Catlin in a similar position to where the first goal was created, and when he squared, Clarke had only to take a touch before slotting into an empty net.

Within a minute of the second half starting Pakistan won three successive penalty corners but goalkeeper James Fair stood up well to the threat of set-piece specialist Sohail Abbas.

The determination of the hosts not to concede was exemplified by Ben Hawes who bravely dived head first to deflect over a rebound strike from the third effort.

Once GB were restored to 11 men, with Jackson's sin-binning from late in the first half having been carried over, they could attack again and Glen Kirkham was only inches away from connecting with Matt Daly's cross.

Tindall's deflection on Hawes' driven pass was turned behind by goalkeeper Imran Shah as GB continued to press for the crucial third goal.

Jackson's excellence was eventually rewarded midway through the second half when his low penalty corner flick gave his side the cushion they needed and him his third goal in his last two matches.

The East Grinstead midfielder almost added a second when his shot, destined for the far corner of the goal, was tipped behind by Shah, but it duly arrived when he flicked another penalty corner - high this time - to make it 4-0.

Sohail maintained his ratio of a goal for every one of his 347 appearances with a late corner of his own but the day belonged to Jackson, the poster boy of Great Britain hockey.
 

5:52pm

GB's Dani King, Laura Trott and Jo Rowsell on the track at the velodrome in the women's team pursuit.

5:49pm

Great Britain's women are about to start their volleyball match against the Dominican Republic.

5:48pm

Queueing traffic and two lanes blocked due to accident on A406 North Circular Road Southbound at A12 Eastern Avenue (Redbridge Roundabout), congestion to M11 J4 (Woodford). Lanes three and four (Of four) blocked just before the exit slip road.

5:47pm

Severe delays on Bakerloo Line due to signal failure at Waterloo. Tickets being accepted on London Overground, South West Trains, Southeastern and London Bus services.

5:44pm

Becky Gallantree and Hannah Starling have scraped through to the semi-final of the women's Olympic three-metre springboard competition at the Aquatics Centre.

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5:32pm

STAFF at Whipps Cross Hospital have been helping out at the Olympics by both performing in its opening ceremony and volunteering at the Games.

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5:28pm

Roger Federer is one victory away from his first Olympic singles gold medal after a remarkable 3-6 7-6 (7/5) 19-17 victory over Juan Martin Del Potro in the semi-finals this afternoon.

The match lasted four hours and 26 minutes, surpassing Rafael Nadal's victory over Novak Djokovic at the Madrid Masters in 2009 as the longest three-set men's singles match in the Open era.

Federer, who won gold in the men's doubles with Stanislas Wawrinka in 2008, is now guaranteed at least a silver medal, while Del Potro must recover to battle for bronze on Sunday after leaving Centre Court in tears.

Del Potro's record on grass is not particularly impressive, while he had faced Federer five times already this season and lost all of them.

The eighth seed had snuck through the draw rather unnoticed but was immediately on form in the first set. Federer was a bit error-prone, and he paid the price as Del Potro broke for 5-3 and then served it out.

The second was a very tense affair, with break points for both men, but it was Del Potro who was looking the more dangerous as he pushed Federer back with his thunderous forehand.

But the world number one hung on, showing the cool temperament that has helped him to 17 grand slam titles, and in the tie-break it was Del Potro who cracked.

Federer saved two break points at the start of the decider but from there it was he who began to threaten more.

Del Potro would not yield though, finding big serves and even bigger groundstrokes when he needed them most.

On and on they went, the Argentinian saving a break point at 7-7 and then picking up a sore hip with a full-length diving volley to hold on in the 17th game.

But Del Potro was finding it harder and harder to withstand the pressure and he finally cracked at 9-9, shanking a forehand to leave Federer serving for the match.

That looked to be that, but surprisingly Federer could not take his opportunity and was promptly broken back to love.

His next chance came at 14-14 when Del Potro slipped to 0-40, but all three chances came and went as the clock ticked towards four hours and then past it.

Federer had a few sticky moments of his own but prevented Del Potro creating a match point, and in the 35th game he finally broke through again to lead 18-17.

An exhausted Del Potro buried his face in his shirt, and this time it was the crucial blow, although there was still time for Federer to miss a simple volley on his first match point before clinching it when his opponent netted a backhand.
 

5:18pm

Great Britain's men's team pursuit squad were set to ride off for gold against perennial rivals Australia on the second day of competition at the London 2012 Olympic Velodrome after setting the second fastest time in history.

With Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins - Olympic champion in the event in 2008 - watching in the back straight, Ed Clancy, Geraint Thomas, Peter Kennaugh and Steven Burke clocked three minutes 52.743 seconds in the first round, effectively a semi-final.

In qualifying on day one the British quartet finished in 3mins 52.499secs, but they only needed to beat Denmark to advance to the final, but they stated their intent clearly before the showdown with Australia.

Australia's Jack Bobridge, Glenn O'Shea, Rohan Dennis and Michael Hepburn, the second fastest qualifiers, three seconds behind Britain, clocked 3:54.317, improving on their qualifying mark.

New Zealand (3:56.422) were set to meet Denmark (3:57.396) in the race for bronze.

Australia dropped O'Shea, their entrant in the omnium, which was set to begin on day three, with 500 metres to go in an apparent bid to conserve his energy, but may have left something in reserve for the final.

Britain, meanwhile, had the option of bringing Andy Tennant into the line-up.
 

5:16pm

Russian track cyclist Victoria Baranova has been sent home from the Olympic Games after testing positive for testosterone, cycling's world governing body the UCI has confirmed.

5:08pm

Back online after some technical problems

3:43pm

GB boxer Fred Evans beats Egidijus Kavaliauskas to reach the quarter finals

3:41pm

British badminton boss Adrian Christy claims it was never realistic to expect Team GB success in the sport at London 2012.

3:34pm

FAMILIES are pleading with Waltham Forest Council to abandon night-time rubbish collections during the Olympic and Paralympic Games following lower than expected levels of traffic.

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3:30pm

GB's Karina Bryant takes bronze in the judo

3:30pm

THE girlfriend of the cyclist who was killed on Wednesday after colliding with an Olympic bus has paid tribute to her 'boo'.

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3:23pm

GB's Karina Bryant about to fight for a judo bronze

3:22pm

Charlotte Dujardin is in pole position to add to Team GB’s gold medal tally after producing a stunning performance in the Olympic Games dressage in Greenwich Park this afternoon.

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3:11pm

Swimmer Daniel Fogg, 24, has been speaking after qualifying for Saturday’s final of the 1500m freestyle in fifth place.
“I’m really happy with that, especially considering it was a morning swim and to finish second in the heat was great,” said Fogg. “I’ve done lots of preparation for today and the crowd definitely helped me to get under 15 minutes.”
“They were great and it’s not often that a swimmer can hear the crowd while they’re competing and coming down the last 200m that helped a lot. Just to get to the Olympics was a dream come true, so to push on and make a final is unbelievable."
 

3:09pm

FOR all the talk of cycling, swimming and even handball, the athletics is many people’s Olympic highlight, and the park was packed out from early this morning.

The park, which holds an enormous TV screen, was the perfect place to catch your first view of Jessica Ennis if, like most of us, you didn’t manage to get a ticket.

With barely a blade of grass visible beneath a huge crowd of families, many clad in Union Jack flags, the atmosphere was electric for Ennis’s appearances in the heptathlon.

But athletics aside, where better to watch Atkins and Grainger storm their way to rowing gold?

Even a two-minute monsoon could not dampen the spirits of the people transfixed by the action.

Damian Guy, 38, came down with his young family to see the park for himself. “We‘ve seen some swimming already, but today we just wanted to come down and be a part of it.”

“London has such a good atmosphere at the moment, you need to enjoy it while you can before everyone’s miserable again,” he laughed.

When the national anthem played for our champion rowers, the crowd rose to their feet and sang along, while bronze medallist Alan Campbell, who looked a broken man, was cheered on as Steve Redgrave helped him get to the podium.

A brief appearance by swimmer Hannah Miley on the park stage was greeted with the kind of applause reserved for rockstars, appropriate as she talked us through what she listens to on her iPod before a race (Skillrex and Pendulum, if you‘re interested).

With the weekend on the horizon and tomorrow being billed as Super Saturday, the perfect chance is coming to get yourself some big screen Olympic atmosphere whether at the park itself or at London’s many live sites. Don’t miss it.

3:04pm

The DLR, Jubilee and Central lines are expected to be particularly busy especially from 4pm to 8pm and from 9pm until closing time.

2:48pm

Roger Federer and Juan Martin Del Potro 3-3 in the deciding set of the men's tennis semi-final.

2:45pm

Woodford Green with Essex Ladies competitor Youcef Abdi missed out on a place in the 3000m Steeplechase final after a sixth place finish in the heats this afternoon

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2:44pm

TfL is expecting a busy day on the transport network tomorrow:

London’s transport commissioner, Peter Hendy, said:
“Saturday will be one of the busiest days of the Games so far with well over 200,000 spectators and workforce expected at the Olympic Park alone, so I urge people to avoid the area unless you are attending a Games event. 

“With the women’s Triathlon and the men’s 20km Race Walk taking place on Saturday there will be road closures in London, so please avoid driving in central London where possible and continue to use GetAheadoftheGames.com to plan your journeys.

“London has many attractions to offer during the Games, so I encourage everyone to enjoy the theatres, restaurants, shops, free concerts, Live Sites and attractions.”
 

2:43pm

British duo Shana Cox and Lee McConnell both progressed to the semi finals of the 400m this afternoon following good runs in the Olympic Stadium.

Woodford Green with Essex Ladies competitor Cox ran in Heat Two and finished third in a time of 52.01, following just behind Botswana’s Amantle Montsho (50.40) and Christine Day (51.05) of Jamaica.

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2:40pm

Karina Bryant misses out and will now compete for the bronze

2:38pm

Karina Bryant taking on Mika Sugimoto from Japan for a place in the judo final

2:36pm

2:35pm

Great Britain's Ben Ainslie leads in the penultimate race of the Finn class with leader Jonas Hogh-Christensen in fourth.

The medal race is on Sunday.
 

2:33pm

A store overlooking the Olympic Park has begun charging customers for the privilege of looking out of its main viewing window.

The John Lewis store in Westfield, which neighbours the site in Stratford introduced the £2 charges on Sunday.

Customers are promised "panoramic views of the London 2012 park" from the viewing gallery on the third floor.

2:28pm

The relieved mother of rower Katherine Grainger said their family could "get on with life" after her long wait for an Olympic gold medal was ended.

Katherine Grainger (left) and Anna Watkins 

2:14pm

A wall of sound hit athletes as they stepped out for the first day of competition at London's Olympic Stadium.

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2:12pm

Ben Ainslie and Jonas Hogh-Christensen continued their battle for Olympic sailing gold on Friday, with the Dane winning the first duel of the afternoon.

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2:09pm

Cyclist Victoria Pendleton will be ready to bounce back from her disappointment in the Olympic women's team sprint, her father said.

2:09pm

Soldiers complained today about "horrible" living conditions, boredom and a lack of Olympics tickets as Boris Johnson visited their packed warehouse base in London.
 

2:06pm

Chingford’s Dan Fogg progressed through to the final of the 1500m freestyle this morning after finishing as the fifth fastest in the heats.

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1:52pm

Great Britain's Richard Davison produced a strong performance to put himself firmly on course for grand prix special qualification at Greenwich Park.

1:48pm

A spectator has been arrested after the family of an Australian cyclist was apparently subjected to a torrent of abuse at the Velodrome last night, Locog said.

Kaarle McCulloch's mother Karen and step-father Ken Bates reportedly faced a stream of insults during a dramatic evening which saw Team GB storm to gold at the Stratford track.

Three people were later banished from the cycling venue, one of whom was held by police, organisers confirmed.

A Locog spokesman said: "Three spectators were ejected - one of whom was arrested - for abusive behaviour at the Velodrome on Thursday evening.

"We won't tolerate abusive behaviour in our venues."

1:41pm

Crystal Palace's GB handball players say they were disappointed not to get their first win, going down 31-25 against Angola.

Captain Lynn McCafferty said: "We didn't make as many mistakes in this game as in previous games and the scoreline doesn't reflect how well we played, but that's the way it is in handball."

And  Marie, who scored nine goals today, added: “I feel a little bit disappointed. Really though, we could’ve won this game but we made quite a few mistakes.

“Our passing wasn't great - we tried to step up but it was not good enough at this level."

Great Britain women will bring the curtain down on their Olympic campaign on Sunday when they take on Croatia.
 

1:27pm

Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers duo Yamile Aldama and Trecia Kaye Smith are both safely through to the Olympic final of the triple jump following this morning’s qualifiers.

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12:56pm

Jack Green said his Olympic Games debut was an ‘amazing’ experience after booking his place in Saturday night’s semi-finals of the 400m hurdles.
The 20-year-old Maidstone-born star finished second in his heat on Friday lunchtime, finishing strongly in 49.49 to earn his place in the last 24.
Decorated hurdles veteran Felix Sanchez of Dominican Rep won the heat in 49.24 as the top-three all secured automatic qualification for the semi-finals.
Green – who has been working tirelessly all year on adapting his stride pattern between hurdles to boost his times – admitted: "I’m really happy, but I think there’s a lot more there.
"I’ve just got to make sure I get the stride right, otherwise it’s not going to happen, but as we saw at Crystal Palace (last month when Green smashed his PB with a time of 48.60), even though I messed up a bit there, I got 90 per cent of it right and if I can get the other 10 per cent right then hopefully I can nick a medal."
Green admitted: "I had to find the balance between running quick and getting through. Noone remembers how quickly you run in the heats. We’ll see what happens tomorrow and the day after.
"It’s the fastest track I’ve been on by far, by far."
He also paid tribute to the 80,000 fans in the Olympic Stadium, saying: "The crowd were amazing. I’ve never had anything like it before. Hopefully it will be the same tomorrow for the semi.
"It was definitely an inspiration but at first it was a bit, 'whoa, hello,' everyone’s here, but it’s great to have everyone cheering for you."
The semi-finals are due to begin at 7pm on Saturday.
 

12:55pm

David Davies' Olympic career came to an end today when he fell short of making the final of the 1,500 metres freestyle.
 

12:39pm

GB rower Alan Campbell battles to a bronze in the single sculls
 

12:36pm

12:31pm

KATHERINE Grainger has ended her quest for Olympic Gold with a fairytale win in the final of women’s double scules at Dorney Lake today.

The Marlow rower was a silver medallist at Sydney, Athens and Beijing and had contemplated retiring rather than putting herself through the Olympic cycle one last time.

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12:17pm

 British rowers Kath Grainger and Anna Watkins take gold in the double sculls

12:14pm

It looks like it's between GB and Australia in the women's double sculls 

12:10pm

The women's double sculls final under way

12:04pm

GB gold medal favourites Kath Grainger and Anna Watkins up next in the double sculls

11:58am

Putney’s Matt Wells could not bring home an Olympic medal from the Men’s Quadruple Sculls, finishing fifth in the final at Eton Dorney.

Having made rowing history by becoming the first men’s team in the final of the discipline, the Great Britain quartet could not stay with the powerful Germans who took gold in 5.42.48.

Nor could the Brits compete with the Croatians in second or Australia in third, finishing four seconds outside the medals.

Now Great Britain’s hopes rest with George Nash from Molesey Boat Club in the Men’s Pairs final.

11:57am

British rowers William Satch and George Nash take bronze in the men's pairs

11:54am

The men's pair final under way featuring Britain's William Satch and George Nash 

11:50am

Tension is building for today’s rowing finals. It seems spectators have turned to eating to quell the nerves as there are massive queues at the food tents. Good to see good old fashioned pig roast and bacon butties are the weapons of choice.

11:50am

Tension is building for today’s rowing finals. It seems spectators have turned to eating to quell the nerves as there are massive queues at the food tents. Good to see good old fashioned pig roast and bacon butties are the weapons of choice.

11:47am

South London neighbours brought together during the Olympics opening ceremony

11:35am

Great Britain's female handball players succumbed to their fourth straight defeat at the Copper Box this morning.

The team, bottom of Group A, were beaten 31-25 by Angola.

But they put up a decent fight in a sport which has become the surprise hit of the Games, bringing the scoreline  back from 31-20 with around five minutes lefty to play.
 

11:35am

Yamile Aldama easily qualified for the final of the women's triple jump today.

The Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers star put in an opening jump of 14.45m, well above the 14.40 distance needed for qualification.

11:33am

11:28am

The French cycling coach has called for a change to the rules after Philip Hindes appeared to admit deliberately crashing to help secure gold for Britain.

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11:26am

Huge cheers erupted as Jessica Ennis was introduced to fans before her heat, followed by an even bigger roar when her time - also a British record for the 100m hurdles - was revealed.

11:20am

Great Britain shooters James Huckle and Jonathan Hammond both failed to make the final of the men's 50m rifle prone this morning.
 

11:16am

11:12am

Gold medal favourites Katherine Grainger and Anna Watkins have been moved into a preferred lane for today's final after the rowing authorities reacted to the wind at Eton Dorney.

11:11am

The women's heptathlon high jump is about to start

11:07am

The time set today by Jessica Ennis would have won gold in the 100m hurdles at Sydney Olympics.
 

11:06am

Royal Marine Chris Sherrington moved into the second round of the men's heavyweight over 100kgs with a submission win against Australian Jake Andrewartha.

10:50am

10:50am

9:31am

Great Britain's hopes of an archery medal are over after their last man standing, Larry Godfrey, was knocked out in the last 16 on a one-arrow shoot-off.

Godfrey came from behind to move within one set of victory but his Malaysian opponent Khairul Anuar Mohamad found his best form at the tail end of the match to tie at 5-5 across five sets.

That left one shot apiece to decide the match and while Godfrey hit a strong nine, Mohamad held his nerve to strike a dead centre 10.
 

9:29am

9:29am

9:29am

9:28am

9:28am

9:11am

UPDATE ON CENTRAL LINE PROBLEMS:

One of the main Tube lines serving the Olympic Park was suspended in east London this morning as hundreds of thousands of people made their way to events including the first day of athletics competition.

A signal failure in the Bethnal Green area meant the Central line was suspended eastbound between Liverpool Street and Leytonstone, Transport for London (TfL) said.

A TfL spokesman said it was working to fix the problem and had staff at Liverpool Street directing people onto other Tube lines and London Overground services to Stratford.

Events at the park today include Jessica Ennis beginning her campaign for gold in the women's heptathlon.
 

8:39am

The Prime Minister has urged people to "come back into the capital" following claims that the 2012 Games had turned London into a "ghost town", with commuters and non-Olympic tourists avoiding the city.

David Cameron said the "threat of meltdown on the traffic system" had been defeated and London was "open for business" during the sporting events.

Shopkeepers in Leyton High Road say the Olympics has turned the area into a "ghost town"

Waltham Abbey shopkeepers report fall in trade despite Olympics - as both tourists and locals give town centre a miss

8:37am

 Olympic silver medallist Gemma Gibbons described yesterday as the best day of her life after she came from nowhere to book her place on the podium at London 2012.

The Charlton-born judoka became Britain’s first Olympic medal winner for 12 years in judo with her success, having seen off world champion Audrey Tcheumeo in a golden score showdown in the semi final.

She lost out in the final to American Kayla Harrison but the 25-year-old was still over the moon with her achievement.

“It’s a rollercoaster of everything. I feel totally, mentally and physically exhausted but it has been the best day of my life,” she explained.

“I always thought I could deliver something like this but hadn’t done. This was another chance to do it and I am just really happy.”

She continued: “I actually normally compete in the weight group below and got some good results but was just pipped by another GB girl for selection.

“So because of my good results I did have, I was given the chance to qualify for the weight above and did that.

“So actually, I don’t really have any ranking in this weight category, so it is amazing to beat the calibre of players I have today.”

And while obviously being a tremendous personal achievement for herself, the former Metro Judo Club member also spoke of what the success means to her sport.

She said: “I think it is really important for the sport. Judo doesn’t get much coverage in Great Britain but we have actually got a group of amazing players.

“Unfortunately in the last 12 years we haven’t managed to get a medal but that doesn’t mean we haven’t had players who are worthy of it – we have had numerous world and European medallists – it just hasn’t come together on that one day every four years.

“I think it is great that we can use this medal and say that we are of the standard.”

Gibbons looked drained after an enthralling battle with Tcheumeo in the semi final but having come through the fight, she paid tribute to her late mother, who died having suffered from leukaemia.

She added: “She passed away eight years ago and she was my biggest support in judo. She took me everywhere and went to all of my competitions.

“I would always like to say thank you and obviously I don’t get that opportunity so I just thought of her.”

8:19am

Traffic returned to normal, 2012 Games traffic management on A12 Southbound at A12 East Cross Route / A106 Eastway (Lea Interchange).

8:18am

Service suspended on Central Line between Liverpool Street and Leytonstone and severe delays on the rest of the line due to signal failure at Bethnal Green. Tickets being accepted on Greater Anglia, First Great Western and local bus services.

8:17am

Team GB is celebrating a golden five minutes when sharp-shooter Peter Wilson gunned his way to Olympic glory and Etienne Stott and Tim Baillie triumphed in the two-man canoe slalom.

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8:15am

Welcome to our live coverage of day seven of the 2012 Olympics.

Heptathlete Jessica Ennis starts her quest for gold as the athletics gets under way in the Olympic Stadium.

She will make four seperate appearances today, beginning at 10.05am with the 100m hurdles. Her event concludes tomorrow.

Rebecca Adlington goes in the 800m freestyle final this evening, while rowers Katherine Grainger and Anna Watkins feature in the final of the double sculls at Eton Dorney.

Cyclist Victoria Pendleton takes part in the keirin at the velodrome. The event sees riders placed behind a motorised bike before a final race to the finish.

Ed Clancy, Steven Burke, Geraint Thomas and Peter Kennaugh will be defending GB's Olympic title in the men's team pursuit.

7:45am

7:44am