Olympics 2012 Results: Biggest Surprises from Day 2

Day 2 of the 2012 Summer Olympics didn't fall short in delivering its share of amazing performances. Some of them were expected, like America's dominance in women's gymnastics.

Others were small surprises, like just how easily the men's new Dream Team handled France in basketball.

Then there were the little-known athletes with even smaller expectations setting Olympic records.

Below are 10 of the day's biggest surprises. Bleacher Report welcomes you to share your thoughts on this list, or nominating your own below.

Spain Eliminated from Medals in Men's Football

No, this isn't a joke—Spain, heavily favored alongside Brazil for the 2012 gold, had their medal hopes dashed for these 2012 Games.

Winners of the 2010 World Cup and 2012 European Championship, tacking on the Olympic gold would have been the crown jewel.

But following an opening game 1-0 loss to Japan, they needed a point on Sunday just to keep their medal hopes alive.

The Spaniards fell to Honduras by the same 1-0 score, however, effectively ending Spain's Olympic run.

Jordyn Wieber, US Women's Gymnastics, Fails to Qualify for All-Around Final

While watching the morning rotation in gymnastics, the topic of the two-person per country rule was being discussed. Some were extolling the virtues of the practice of only letting two gymnasts per team compete in each individual final, as it keeps competition open for athletes from less-dominant countries.

I found myself in stark disagreement, as the practice could keep one of the best gymnasts out of the finals in the name of "fairness." The core of my argument was that Aly Raisman definitely looked like a worthy all-around finals contender, but was being beaten out by teammates Gabby Douglas and Jordyn Wieber.

In the end, my concern for Raisman was misguided. Following a small bobble by Wieber in the floor exercise, Raisman turned in a commanding performance and lodged one of the best scores on the apparatus.

She also squeezed ahead of Wieber, meaning the defending world champion and gold-medal favorite doesn't qualify to compete for the individual all-around title, even though her final score of 60.032 was good for fourth among all countries and competitors.

Raisman should be free to celebrate her day unencumbered, but instead has to shoulder the burden of knocking her teammate out of the finals. It isn't fair to either competitor. 

"

Gymnastics all-around world champion Jordyn Wieber fails to qualify for Olympic fiinal cbc.ca/olympics/gymna…

— CBCSports TopStories (@cbcsports) July 29, 2012"

Michael Phelps 0-2 in Gold-Medal Quest

Following Michael Phelps' collapse, or at least his return to being human on Saturday, he looked to rebound with the men's 4x100-meter freestyle relay team. The U.S. won the same event in Beijing, grabbing an amazing come-from-behind win over France.

This time is was France's turn to chase down the favored Americans. Ryan Lochte ran out of gas in his final 50 meters and surrendered the U.S. lead.

Phelps has five races left to add to his gold medal total, or at least get the two he needs to become the all-time medal winner in the Olympics.

Kim Rhode, US Shooting, Shatters Olympic Records

It isn't a surprise that Kim Rhode won a gold medal. It's impressive, but not surprising, that she has now won a medal in five straight Olympic Games.

What was also impressive is the manner in which she dominated the sport this year.

Her run started in 1996 with a bronze in double trap shooting. She followed that with a bronze in 2000 and another gold in 2004. That event was dropped in 2008, so she moved over to skeet shooting and won a silver medal.

How did she follow it up? Rhode set a qualifying round record in skeet by scoring 74 points out of a possible 75. Not to be outdone, she shattered the previous finals record of 93 points (out of 100) with a near-perfect 99.

She had the gold secured well before she was finished, making concentration a bit hard.

"I told myself, 'Don't cry. You won't be able to see the birds. It'll be blurry,'" she said, via Yahoo! Sports.

With that performance, she made Olympic history for the Americans.

"

Kimberly Rhode becomes 1st American with medals from 5 consecutive #Olympics after gold win in women's skeet shooting bbc.in/Oy9qgH

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) July 29, 2012"

Om Yun Chol, Weightlifting Gold for North Korea, and Kim Jong-Il as a Deity

American sports fans have become accustomed to hearing sports stars thanking a higher power following a tremendous performance. It should be of little surprise to hear athletes from different cultures and religious backgrounds do the same.

North Korea's Om Yun Chol had a praiseworthy and gold-medal winning day and performance in Day 2 action, and he didn't disappoint when it came to the sharing-the-credit situation.

The powder-keg, who stands just 4'10", lifts in the 56 kg (123 lbs) category and wasn't expected to medal. He was part of the lower-ranked "B" group on Sunday, with the medal-hopefuls in the "A" group lifting later in the day.

Setting an Olympic record in the process, Om joined a short list of weightlifters that have lifted three times their body weight.

Om said, via the Associated Press, after his performance:

"

How can any man possibly lift 168kg (370 lbs)? I believe the great Kim Jong-Il looked over me. I am very happy and give thanks to our Great Leader for giving me the strength to lift this weight. I believe Kim Jong-Il gave me the record and all my achievements. It is all because of him.

"

Perhaps Om wasn't clear on the difference between a country's supreme leader and a supreme being—or maybe Western civilization isn't understanding of the role a nation's former ruler has with their subjects.

Either way, Om's performance was a tremendous feat and one of the big surprises on the day. Just not more surprising than his praise of Kim Jong-Il.

"

Amazing! Olympic record and joint-world record for Om Yun Chol in B group, that's not meant to happen! #paolympics twitter.com/drewwilliams_p…

— Drew Williams (@drewwilliams_pa) July 29, 2012"

Great Britain Reaches Team Finals in Women's Gymnastics

To say Great Britain has been weak in gymnastics is on par with saying the U.S. hasn't been very good in badminton. Both countries have been so immaterial in the two respective sports that they are, at best, an afterthought in the Olympic Games.

But on the heels of the GB men securing a spot in their first men's gymnastics team final in 88 years Saturday, the Great Britain women reciprocated on Day 2 by powering their way to the women's team final and will now join the U.S., China, Russia, Japan, Romania, Canada and Italy.

Don't expect either team to medal, but having the men and women reach the team finals is a major accomplishment. Great Britain didn't even qualify a full team for the 2008 Beijing Games.

This could be a huge opportunity to expand the sport in Britain, and is an incredible testament to both teams.

"

"It was the best feeling in the world, I can't even put it into words," @bethtweddlenews on reaching the team final #Gymnastics

— Team GB (@TeamGB) July 29, 2012"

Lizzie Armitstead, Cycling, After Winning First U.K. Medal

The women's road race is an 87-mile ride through the streets of London which takes a tremendous toll on the riders. It was even worse on Sunday, as the riders faced rain-soaked roads.

But one couldn't help but be amazed at Lizzie Armitstead during her post-race interview.

Instead of looking like an exhausted drowned rat, she had the glow and excitement of...well...someone that had just given her nation their first Olympic medal in their home games.

But she looked as fresh as if she'd just gotten out of the shower and was headed for a ride in the park.

Jolly-good show, Lizzie!

U.S. Record Is 4-0 in Boxing

Lightweight Jose Ramirez (132 lbs) and welterweight Errol Spence (152 lbs) both won decisions on Sunday, making  USA Boxing a surprising 4-0 in the 2012 Games.

Joseph Diaz Jr. and Terrell Gausha have also added wins for Team USA as they attempt to rebound from a disappointing appearance in Beijing.

In '08, one fighter failed to make weight, another lost in Round 1, and the remaining two lost their second-round matches.

Australia Fails to Medal in Men's 4x100 Freestyle

While Team USA and France were expected to contend in the men's 4x100-meter freestyle relay, the Australians were favored to win gold.

They didn't, as the French had a stirring rally over the final 50 meters to edge out the Americans.

Surely Australia would be third, though...wouldn't they? 

Not exactly.

Russia held off James Roberts and the defending world champions on the final leg to squeeze out a 0.22-second win.

Romania out of Gold-Medal Hunt in Gymnastics

With the injury to star gymnast Larisa Iordache, it appears as though the Romanian women won't be able to make a run at team gold. She developed plantar plantar fasciitis in her heel and was limited in podium training.

Her performances on Sunday were well below expectations.

Romania appeared ready to reclaim their former glory after winning the European Championships, and Iordache was to be the "new Nadia" (Comaneci). They beat out the favored squad from Russia, but came in over four points behind them in the qualification round.

Iordache scored a decent 57.800-point total, but was outscored by three Americans and five other gymnasts.

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