My favorite piece of trash-talk came during Game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals. With Karl Malone standing at the foul-line in the game's final seconds with two crucial shots upcoming, Scottie Pippen casually walked by him and muttered "the Mailman doesn't deliver on Sundays." Malone proceeded to miss both shots. Martyn Rooney's trash-talk during yesterday's Olympic 4x400m relay semifinal was like Pippen's classic line in absolutely no way.

Briefly: this fool, Rooney, turned around while leading a semifinal race where the top-three teams advance to the final and put his finger to his lips to make the universal "quiet down" symbol. The teams he was 'shushing', Jamaica and the Bahamas, were comfortably in position to make the finals and could not have cared less that they were steps behind Rooney, who was wearing sunglasses at night.

We here at Fourth-Place Medal thought it really couldn't get much worse than taunting opponents in a semifinal round. Or could it? On this, the penultimate day

Before the broadcast of the rhythmic gymnastics all-around competition, NBC's Jim Lampley noted that the sport had been dominated by Europeans. It's true. Since Canadian Lori Fung won the inaugural gold medal in the boycotted-1984 Olympics, a non-European has not won another gold. Among the top ten athletes at this year's games, only three were not European, and they didn't break the top five.

Whether rhythmic gymnastics is a sport is debatable, though some bloggers have definitely made their opinions known. That's not really the point. Softball and baseball are being eliminated, in part, because the sports are not international enough and too dominated by North America. Taekwondo is also rumored to be on the chopping block because it is dominated by a small group of countries. The fact that this "sport" keeps its Olympic status shows the hypocrisy of the heavily-European IOC.

Photo via Getty Images

A few links to keep your day going ...

I've got to give Argentina's Lionel Messi a lot of credit. He came to the Olympics even after his club team told him he couln't go to Beijing. Now he has accomplished his dream of winning a gold medal. [McClatchy Newspapers]

Vancouver gets ready to take over the Olympic spotlight. [Houston Chronicle]

With the first pick in the 2009 MLB Draft the Washington Nationals select Stephen Strasburg? [Washington Post]

A reporter falls in love with handball. [LA Times]

Despite losing the gold medal match, the U.S. women's volleyball team is still proud of its accomplishments. [Dallas Morning News]

Photo via Getty Images

Let's take a look back at some of the best pictures of the day ...

LaShawn Merritt makes sure he doesn't drop the baton during the 4 x 400 meter relay

The South Korea baseball team shocks Cuba to win gold

Javier Mascherano and the Argentinian soccer team defeat Nigeria 1-0 in gold medal match

U.S. 4x400 meter women's relay team celebrates after winning gold medal

Photos via Getty Images

Cuban taekwondo competitor Angel Matos and his coach, Leudis Gonzalez, may be permanently banned from Olympics competition after Matos kicked referee Chakir Chelbat. The altercation occurred when Matos was disqualified in the second round of his match with Kazakhstan's Arman Chilmanov.

Up 3-2 with a minute remaining, Matos fell to the ground and awaited medical attention when his one minute of injury time expired, thereby awarding the match to his adversary. From there, Matos snapped and created a scene straight out of the WWE handbook.

Matos angrily questioned the call, pushed a judge, then pushed and kicked referee Chakir Chelbat of Sweden. Matos then spat on the floor and was escorted out.

“He was too strict,” Gonzalez said, referring to the decision to disqualify Matos. Afterward, he charged the match was fixed, accusing the Kazakhs of offering him money.

In addition to the Olympics ruling, Matos and Gonzalez may be banned from all championships sanctioned by the World Taekwondo

I guess when you've won four consecutive gold medals you have to find new ways to celebrate. Lisa Leslie (in the middle of the Charlie's Angels pose; Candace Parker on left, Delisha Milton-Jones on right) had 14 points and seven rebounds as the U.S. women's basketball team defeated Australia 92-65 to earn another Olympic championship. Leslie, who was playing in her last Olympic game, joined her old teammate Teresa Edwards as being the only U.S. players ever to win four gold medals in the sport.

From the AP Report:

“I visualized having a fourth gold medal,” Leslie told NBC. “I’ve been able to represent my country since I was 24 years old. It’s been just awesome.”

Kara Lawson had a team-high 15 points for the Americans while Parker finished with 14 points of her own. This was the thrid consecutive time the Aussies have lost to Team U.S.A. in an Olympic final. According to the AP, the U.S.A. has now won 33 consecutive Olympic games in a row.

It will be interesting to see if the U.S. can

We're celebrating the best and worst of the Olympics. Check here for more FPM Medals.

There was some discussion at the FPM water cooler on which ad would receive this award. So many are worthy of recognition -- the Marvin Gaye Nike ad and the Visa Go World series particularly stood out. However, for its use of a great song, strong images and allusions to the entire Olympic experience, we award:

Nike's ad that proclaims "All that you need is inside of you" is the winner of the FPM Medal for best commercial. The various images of life on the way to Olympic glory are complemented by the Killers' song "All These Things That I Have Done." Nike has once again shown that they can dazzle us with their marketing. Maybe they think it will keep us from noticing their ridiculous prices.

10:00 a.m. ET, NBC: The U.S. women's basketball team, led by veteran Lisa Leslie and up and coming superstar Candace Parker plays for gold live against Australia, led by WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson. Also, two of the most picked-upon sports, synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics, have their finals.

4:00 p.m. ET, NBC: In women's volleyball, the U.S. goes for gold against volleyball powerhouse Brazil. The U.S. men's and women's team have the chance to complete the U.S. sweep in volleyball after the American wins on the beach.

7:30 p.m. ET, NBC: Last week, when the women's marathon aired, I thought that it would be boring to watch. Then, there were injuries, people falling, runners dropping out and a furious finish to decided silver and bronze. I was glad I watched, and will certainly be tuning in for the men's marathon airing live. The diving 10m platform finals, and several track finals will be aired.

Photo via Getty Images