The final day of the Games of the 29th Olympiad is upon us, and this image from yesterday's men's 10m platform diving competition is the best visual metaphor this blog can come up with. It's almost time to come up for air.

The men's marathon is winding through the streets of Beijing in hot, stuffy early morning conditions, and there will be more on that later. For now, a few closed loops from the busiest day of the Olympics, the penultimate Day 15.

FIELD HOCKEY: This is truly golden era for German men's field hockey, as the country now owns the World Cup, Champions Trophy and now Olympic gold. All the side needed was one early goal by Christopher Zeller (Germany's penalty-stroke hero in the semifinal game) to defeat Spain 1-0.

The bronze medal match between momentary world No. 1 Australia and the Netherlands, a redo of the thrilling overtime gold medal game from Athens, was over quickly. The Dutch had their hearts split open during that semifinal loss to Germany that went overtime, and then featured a penalty stroke contest that went overtime. The Kookaburras banged out three goals in the first nine minutes and closed with a dominating 6-2 win. Three goals is a blowout in football, and a four-goal deficit in field hockey leads to questions as to why the team even showed up.

VOLLEYBALL: The current No. 1 women's team in the world, Brazil, has won four of the last five FIVB Grand Prix titles but never won a women's volleyball gold medal at the Olympics. That was rectified in dominant fashion as the Brazilians swept through pool play, then dominated all the way through the knockout stage. Against the United States on Day 15, Brazil lost the second set 25-18. It was the only set they lost for the entire tournament.

The U.S. clearly overachieved, spurred on by raw emotions after the bizarre street murder of a member of the country's volleyball delegation. But Brazil's 25-18, 18-25, 25-13, 25-21 win was complete and total, and overall it was the most impressive Olympic display of women's volleyball since Japan at Montreal 1976, which won all five of its games and all 15 of its sets.

But the story of the tournament is not complete without a Cuban sidebar. On the same day as the country's baseball team relinquished its gold medal to South Korea, the women's volleyballers exited meekly in the bronze medal match against defending gold medalists China. Cuba had lost just three sets in a 5-0 stomp through pool play, then smashed Serbia in the quarters.

But the wheels came off in the semis against the U.S., with unforced errors and slump-shouldered play more worthy of 0-5 Algeria. The U.S. won that match in surprising straight sets, and China won in four yesterday. Camera views during timeouts showed that the team was paying absolutely no attention to the words of longtime coach Antonio Perdomo, a classic "tune out." This blog imagines that the end of this story has not yet been reached.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport, which has been quite busy lately and has issued rulings counter to the Olympic movement several times in the last few months, wrapped up its review of the seemingly endless Danish sailing imbroglio. Before the stormy, rainy 49er competition last Sunday, the two-man Danish crew's mast snapped and they borrowed the eliminated Croatians' boat, complete with "CRO" markings. Then they sailed to gold past the confused Spaniards and Italians. The CAS put down the final word yesterday -- Denmark will keep the medals -- but the pair really should take the Croats out to dinner or something.

Usain Bolt, Mr. Lightning, knows about giving back. Before leaving town with his three gold medals, he donated US $50,000 to the Red Cross to help children in the earthquake-ravaged Sichuan province. "You have to move forward after the disaster. And also, the Olympics ask people to move forward," Bolt told the media.

Finally, yes, we have to move forward. Nerve endings are red and tender, tear ducts are hopelessly itchy, but that's common at the end of the Olympics. But no matter what your emotional state at the moment, this is a beautiful image. It's the men's football medal ceremony at the Bird's Nest; Brazil is collecting its bronze medals as its semifinal conquerors, Argentina, enjoys its second consecutive golden moment. Attending the proceedings was Diego Maradona, Argentina's greatest player of all time. He took a moment to offer a small but resounding moment of tribute towards the greatest Brazilian player of the current age, Ronaldinho.

This is a place where generational arrogance fades, petty nationalism disappears, historical feuds are forgotten, and ultimate respect happens. You know, the Olympics.

Photo © Icon SMI; credit Associated Press

At the close of each day of competition, this blog will present the brackets of all active team sports.

Results of the Day 15 competitions.

It's the late, late evening in the late, late stages of the Beijing Olympics, and things are just starting to get weird. A quick look at some of the ejections, expulsions and arbitrations that are going on around the Games.

BASEBALL: South Korea won the gold medal in thrilling fashion. Up 3-2 headed into the bottom of the ninth inning, the Koreans yielded three Cuban baserunners with one out. Adding to the drama was that catcher Min-ho Kang was ejected for arguing balls and strikes after a walk loaded the bases. Kang held the ball in the same spot for nearly 20 seconds, a silent indication to the umpire that it was a strike. As he left the field, he threw his glove and mask against the dugout wall.

When order was restored, Cuba's Yuliesky Gorriel grounded into a double play. South Korea won the gold medal with an undefeated tournament, and now the sport will disappear from the Olympics, having been voted out in 2005.

IOC president Jacques Rogge attended the bronze medal game between Japan and the United States (won in comeback fashion by the U.S., 8-4), accompanied by international baseball federation head Harvey Schiller. After Schiller schooled him on the difference between a fastball and a curveball, Rogge continued a weeklong pattern of saying bizarre things.

This blog is generally supportive of Count Rogge, and thinks he's generally misunderstood by people who only spend two weeks every two years with him. And while his comments were slightly backhanded to the Cuban state system's extended excellence and South Korea's diligent and inspiring teamwork, his desire to align his brand with the world's top players is understandable from a marketing perspective.

"We have LeBron James in basketball. We had Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Magic Johnson on the Dream Team. That trend has continued in basketball, and we have all the stars of the NHL. So we would love to have as many stars of the major leagues as possible. I'd love to see Rodriguez."

Really, wouldn't we all love to see Rodriguez? But any headline like IOC wants major leaguers to participate if baseball returns to Olympics is misleading, and the kind of glossover falsehood common in Olympic journalism. The Belgian count is not an authoritarian head of the Olympic Movement -- there are over 100 voting members who make these decisions, and the entire body will convene in Copenhagen next year to rule on which sports will be added to the 2016 program to take the softball and baseball spots.

Rogge rarely gets exactly what he wants. For instance, in both 2002 and 2005 he explicitly called for modern pentathlon to be axed from the Games in time for London 2012, and that two of his favorite sports (rugby sevens and golf) be added. Thanks to a strong eastern European presence on the IOC, he was denied his joy. Also thanks to that overwhelming Euro influence, baseball has as much of a chance to be brought back as tug of war. This blog puts the chances of baseball's reinstatement, Rodriguez or no, at about three percent.

TAEKWONDO: Last update, this blog spoke in glowing terms about the officials' willingness to correct mistakes in judging in the women's heavyweight competition. In the other weight class, the men's heavyweight division, more official controversy. Angel Valodia Matos of Cuba (above) was ahead of Kazakhstan's Arman Chilmanov 3-2 in their bronze medal match, but Matos spent a large amount of time on the sidelines having his foot treated. In a sport that has little patience for stalling, the Cuban was warned and then eliminated.

What happened next, once the event footage is de-embargoed, will make the rounds of YouTube and highlight shows for the remainder of eternity. As coaches spilled on to the mat, 2000 welterweight gold medalist Matos showed his foot fitness by delivering a high kick to Swedish match referee Chakir Chelbat's head. Matos was removed from the arena under heavy security.

UPDATE... When you see the clip, take particular note of Chilmanov when Chelbat awards him the match. He simply pumps his fists a couple of times, casts an idle glance at the allhell that is breaking loose, and walks off the mat... as if this kind of thing happens all the time in taekwondo. It does not.

WRESTLING: As if that wasn't enough judging news, comes word that the Court of Arbitration for Sport has ruled in favor of Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian, famous for throwing his bronze medal on the mat after losing a controversial decision. The CAS ruled that Abrahamian was wrongfully denied a video review and that his right to a protest was refused. He will not have his medal restored, but the abritrator confirmed that the sport's immediate-appeals process needs to be fixed.

This blog does not like to end updates on down notes. Check out this cool bug on the BOB camera lens at the 11th place classification men's field hockey game.

The last full evening of competition is under way as the Olympic world comes to grips with saying goodbye again. Baseball, men's field hockey, women's basketball and volleyball titles will be decided in the next few hours. What else is new?

FOOTBALL: It's become a tradition on the Games' penultimate day. The central athletics and ceremonial stadium, free of any morning track qualification duties, was momentarily transformed into a pitch for the men's gold medal match between Argentina and Nigeria. In contrast to the buzzing crowds at the Bird's Nest for the track events, there were singing, bands and chanting -- just like any freewheeling World Cup. It was the closest the Beijing Olympics have come to a spontaneous party in two weeks.

Angel di Maria of Argentina, fed by a Messi pass an hour in, delivered an perfect piece of football architecture -- a looping lob shaped like one of the metal threads in the iconic National Stadium. It was the only goal of the day in a match with few spectacular thrills, as temperatures in the stadium reached a stifling 107 degrees. In a rare move, the referees stopped play after FIFA's chief medical officer intervened in the 30th minute so that players could take a water break.

Argentina, which beat Paraguay in the 2004 gold medal match (on a historic football-basketball double day), became the first repeat Olympic champion since Hungary won at both Tokyo 1964 and Mexico City 1968. Great Britain (1908-1912) and Uruguay (1924-1928) are the only other two countries to win consecutive Olympic titles in this sport.

Meanwhile, Ronaldhino pleaded with his countrymen to respect the country's bronze medal after a 3-0 final win over Belgium in Shanghai yesterday. Brazil, winner of an unprecedented five World Cups, is still seeking its first Olympic championship. "For Brazilians, coming second or last is the same," he said.

SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING: The Russians defended their gold medals in the team competition, capping a 10-year run of dominance in the sport. But the real news was that the final table included changes from the technical routine, in stark contrast to the duets, where the 24-entry standings remained perfectly static for three days.

Japan slid from fourth into a tie for fifth, and it took a swimmer being stretchered out of the Watercube for the standings to move. Hiromi Kobayashi was fetched from the pool by safety officials after the free routine when she became visibly distressed. She was taken to a local hospital, where she was reportedly resting and recovering this afternoon. "The team leader told me what happened to her was too much breathing," said the team press representative.

After weeks of positive preemptive drug tests in the run-up to the Games, the low number of doping cases have given Olympic cynics other things to complain about, like whether synchro belongs or not, or lipsynching girls and underage gymnasts. Since the IOC took over testing two weeks ago, just six human athletes have been caught (10 overall in all species). The latest to be kicked out of Olympia is Igor Razoronov of the Ukraine, a weightlifter who finished sixth in the heavyweight division and was discovered to have used anabolic steroids.

As for one of those four show jumping horses that tested for a banned painkiller, Ireland's national committee head Pat Hickey threatened to pull his country's equestrian team out of future Games, claiming that two consecutive Olympiads with positive drug tests have dragged the country's sports reputation "through the mud" and that show jumping should be removed from the Olympics.

TAEKWONDO: Truth be told, the increasingly corrupt boxing federation will be dropped long before horse sport is, and another combat discipline showed incredible capacity for self-correction today. In the quarterfinals of the women's heavyweight division, Great Britain's Sarah Stevenson was given second life after a successful appeal showed that she had landed a two-point kick to the head against Chen Zhong of China. Initially, world champion Chen had been awarded the bout by a 1-0 score.

After the reversed decision, Stevenson wasn't mentally ready to continue and lost her semifinal. But it's a victory for sports that have clear rules and regulations and points tied with tasks, instead of vague rules about landed punches. "Credit to the Chinese for showing good sportsmanship by saying that the decision needed to be overturned," said British delegation head afterward.

HANDBALL: In a followup from earlier, Norway easily took the women's title from Russia, winning 34-27 to claim the program's first Olympic gold and avenge a bad loss in the 2007 World Championship. A spread of seven qualifies as a handball blowout. "Today, Russia were not on the same level as us. It was a good day to meet them," Goreil Snorroeggen proclaimed. All hail your handball queens, world.

Photo credit: Associated Press

Hard to believe that there are only 36 short hours left. The football final between Argentina and Nigeria is under way at the Bird's Nest, the baseball medal games are progressing, and the mountain bike competition for women is on -- all in hot, clear, smog-free conditions. Here are a few more items of Day 15 interest.

HANDBALL: The gold medal match in the women's tournament is destined to be a memorable clash, as the two survivors are the only two undefeated teams in the tournament, Russia and Norway. It's also a rehash of the 2007 World Championship title game from last December, which was a similar clash of unbeatens. Russia won 29-24.

Russia lifted the cup, but Katja Nyberg was named tournament MVP a year ago. Former Finnish citizen Nyberg and current team captain Gro Hammerseng have helped revive a dormant handball power. Norway won silvers in 1988 and 1992, bronzed in Sydney eight years ago. Hammerseng and Nyberg are an out lesbian couple.

As for the defending silver medalist South Koreans, winners of gold in 1988 and 1992 before a three-Olympiad Danish reign, the tournament came to an abrupt and controversial end on Day 13.

Norway held a 28-25 lead with 1:15 remaining, and the Koreans deposited three quick goals to tie the score with five seconds left. After running the length of the floor, Hammerseng unleashed a flying shot that was as close a call as there can be. It appeared to pass the goal line just as the clock hit 30 minutes (handball counts up), and Norway escaped with a 29-28 win that avenged both Seoul and Barcelona losses at once.

The Koreans staged a sit-in protest, not leaving their bench for half an hour, and later filed protests with the world handball body and the Court of Arbitration for Sport. It was the capper of an odd year, which saw a complete replay of the Asian Olympic qualifying tournaments after a scandal involving Middle Eastern referees.

FIELD HOCKEY: Much less drama and intrigue in field hockey these days, at least the off-field kind. The top four teams in the world made the semifinals, and there was a minor upset when resurgent Spain stormed back from a two-goal hole to shock defending Olympic gold medalists and world No. 1 Australia 3-2.

Neither the Aussies nor the Netherlands had lost a game in pool play, but they'll end up playing for bronze. Germany overcame the Dutch in the other semi, but it came down to penalty strokes after a 1-1 deadlock. Not only that, it was tied 3-3 after all five shooters had made attempts for both teams, and a Christopher Zeller goal was followed by a rare Taeke Taekema miss for Holland. A German celebration (above) ensued.

It's a good bet that the gold medal match will go to extra time as well -- the last two have.

There will be a lot of talk in this space about London 2012 in coming days, especially in regards to the potential for fascinating contrast. Usually, no two consecutive meetings of the youth of the world are even remotely similar, but this has the look of a night-and-day split. While the surrounding areas have been unusually quiet these past two weeks, England is promising a spillover party in the streets. And while the details of the Closing Ceremonies have been guarded like nuclear secrets, London's organizers have given out so much detail about their eight-minute handover presentation that you can practically see the thing play out in your head.

London's set will start with a red London double-decker bus driving around the Bird's Nest stadium. The bus will be backed by a musical sequence which combines elements of the shipping forecast, Jersualem, Greensleeves and harmonies based on the chimes of Big Ben. Hoy, Pendleton and Reade, dressed as everyday Londoners, will then follow on their bikes. Three dance groups will also be involved - the Royal Opera House, street dance theatre group ZooNation and CandoCo, a company which specialises in mixing performers with and without disabilities. The dancers will surround the double-decker when it comes to a halt at a bus stop, and a 10-year-old girl from east London, Tayyiba Dudhwala, will emerge to receive a football from another girl, Erika Tham.

The bus will then transform itself, with the top half folding down in segments to show a privet hedge cut into shapes of the London skyline: Tower Bridge, Battersea Power Station, the Houses of Parliament, while a phalanx of black umbrellas will be unfurled alongside.

We even know that rock fogey Jimmy Page and poplet Leona Lewis will emerge to offer a rendition of Led Zeppelin "Whole Lotta Love." We're even aware that the racy lyrics will be changed from "every inch of my love" to "every bit of my love" for the occasion.

And this will follow an organizing committee that banned a South Korean broadcaster for leaking Opening Ceremony rehearsal footage in July.

Photo credit: Getty Images