Well, we have reached that time where we had to say our goodbyes to four unlucky teams that failed to qualify for the quarterfinals of the men's handball tournament. The teams that didn't qualify were China, Brazil, Germany, and Egypt. The biggest surprise was the failure of the German handball team. They had won the gold medal in the 2007 World Championships and were a big disappointment to handball fans across the globe. Not to mention, a key player, Pascal Hens went down with a knee injury early in the tournament. That definitely could have hindered Germany's procession as well.  As these teams lost, one could really see in the anguish and agony that these players were feeling.  Interviewing the athletes was very difficult because their Olympic dreams were crushed. They were at a loss for words and many were crying. Four years of training and preparation just ended much too quickly.  

The semifinals matches are as follows: Croatia v France and Iceland v Spain. The defending Gold medal champion from the Athens 2004 Olympic Games Croatia, beat Denmark on Wednesday.  Also, France beat Russia, Iceland beat Poland, and Spain beat Korea in the quarterfinals. The losing squads now must face each other to place for rankings five through eight. It will be very interesting how this "olympic puzzle will piece itself together", when all is said and done.

And with that, we are now moving from the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium, a stadium which holds approximately 4,400 people, to the National Indoor Stadium, which holds nearly 20,000 people. The National Indoor Stadium was where gymnastics was held and lies on the Olympic Green.  But don't worry, the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium is not being shut down just yet.  It is now going to be the home of Wushu!