Olympics 2012: 10 Coolest Photos from Ninth Day of Summer Games

Bleacher Report is providing readers with some of the best pictures of the Olympic Games. Today's offerings are a blend of sweet success, bizarre images and sheer beauty.

Continue to check in each day for the latest results and analysis of what's ahead, as well as some of the coolest pictures available.

If you've missed any of the prior days we'd like to make that easy on you as well:

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Day 8

We look forward to your thoughts and captions you'd like to add.

10. I Think I Can, I Think I Can, I Think I Can...

The women's super heavyweights took center stage today in weightlifting. The medals went to:

Gold: Zhou Lulu, China
Silver: Tatiana Kashirina, Russia
Bronze: Hripsime Khurshudyan, Armenia

Holley Mangold, the sister of the famous New York Jets center, was 10th. Even Nick would have been hard-pressed to beat out Zhou and her world-record finish of 333 kg (734 lbs) combined in the snatch and clean and jerk.

9. I Thought I Could...

Hripsime Khurshudyan couldn't finish at 291 lbs in the snatch. It wouldn't matter, though, as she secured the bronze and was well off the pace for silver.

8. I've Got Spirit, Yes I Do!

Erik Kynard loves to show off his style while he's showing off his style. That would be fashion and jumping, respectively.

Kynard's jump of 7 feet, 6 inches was one of five to clear that mark and qualify for Tuesday's final. 

7. Splish, Splash

It was an exciting day in water polo with the quarterfinal matches. Spain advanced with a tense 9-7 win over the host nation, while Australia edged China in a shootout (4-2).

The Aussies will face the United States in the semifinals following their 9-6 win over Italy, while Hungary slipped by Russia 11-10 to get a shot at Spain.

6. The Agony of Defeat

Perhaps "cool" or "defeat" aren't the best words to describe this picture or McKayla Maroney's fall from grace. After all, she still won a silver medal following a brilliant opening vault.

But she opened the door for Romania's Sandra Izbasa to take the gold. Maria Paseka from Russia won the bronze medal. Maroney hit her vaults when it mattered for her team, but couldn't do the same for herself.

Here are a few more summaries of her rough day, courtesy of Getty Images.

  

  

5. The Agony of Victory

Ethiopia's Tiki Gelana hit the tape to win the women's marathon. While she is likely thrilled to continue the dominance of her country's women in long-distance races, the grueling race took a toll on her and the other 106 women that finished. The 11 that couldn't finish all have varying degrees of pain to work though.

Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya took the silver with Russia's Tatyana Petrova Arkhipova finishing in the bronze-medal position.

4. One of These Things Are Not Like the Others

While he failed to qualify for the finals in the men's 400-meter, Oscar Pistorius (center) demonstrated that his heart is different from the average sprinter. 

3. To Get Ready

The women complete the triple-jump competition, with Olga Rypakova of Kazakhstan winning gold.

2. Jumping the Net?

While most players are satisfied with jumping the net after a big win, Andy Murray opted to jump into the stands to celebrate his Olympic gold medal with long-term girlfriend Kim Sears. She was also there to console him after his finals loss four weeks ago on this same surface to the same Roger Federer...although both players looked a bit different in today's action as Murray pulled out a 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 victory.

1. Lightning Is Faster Than the Beast

Usain Bolt has worked through injury issues on and off the track in recent seasons, but he left no doubt that he is still the world's fastest man. He was well ahead of Yohan Blake, Jason Gatlin and Tyson Gay, setting a new Olympic record of 9.63 seconds in the 100-meter dash.