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The book: Four of the 14 members of the first U.S. Olympic team were Princeton students: Robert Garrett 1897 won the discus and shot put, was runner-up in the long jump and third in the high jump; Albert Tyler 1897 was runner-up in the pole vault; Herbert Jamison 1897 was runner-up in the 400 meters; and Francis Lane 1897 competed in the 100 meters. William Sloane, a Princeton classics professor, was influential in establishing the team. Igniting the Flame tells the story of the Princetonians’ role in the inaugural modern Games in 1896. Another Princeton connection: Keith Wallman ’00, an editor at Lyons Press, acquired and edited this book.

 

From the book: “Equally remarkable was that the man most responsible for putting the team together — one William Mulligan Sloane — was noted more for scholarship than for athletics. And yet Sloane, the eminent Princeton University historian, had been a tour de force in building the U.S. team. As the American representative of an international committee appointed by the French nobleman Baron Pierre de Coubertin to revive the ancient Greek games, Sloane had worked for two years to assemble a U.S. Olympic team. Overlooked and belittled by U.S. amateur sports officials who showed no interest in the Olympics, Sloane had soldiered on, determined to find a way to get his small band of athletes to Athens.”

 

Review: “Reisler weaves a handful of narrative threads: the story of the resurrection of the Olympic Games, and of the men who accomplished it; the primitive means of travel and lodging; the stories of the individual American athletes and accounts of the events; and some whatever-happened-to-those-guys follow-up,” wrote Kirkus Reviews. Reisler “skillfully records the cries and struggles attending a nearly miraculous rebirth.”

 

Robert Hilferty ’82, a freelance writer, filmmaker, and AIDS activist best known for his 1989 short documentary “Stop the Church,” died on July 24, 2009. According to his companion, Fabio Toblini, Hilferty committed suicide while suffering from complications of a head injury he’d endured several months earlier. At the time of his death, he left his magnum opus unfinished: a full-length documentary about avant-garde composer Milton Babbitt *92, his former teacher and a longtime member of the Princeton music faculty.

 

But the story doesn’t end there. Toblini asked composer Laura Karpman, a former Babbitt student (at Juilliard) who had seen Hilferty’s work in progress and had discussed with him the changes he intended to make, if she would be willing to complete the film. Karpman agreed — and posted the result on NPR Music a few days after Babbitt’s death, in January 2011. (A YouTube version of the 64-minute film can also be seen below.)

 

Babbitt: Portrait of a Serial Composer provides a sampling of Babbitt’s atonal and serial-music compositions, including “Three Compositions for Piano” (1947), “Partitions” (1964), “The Joy of More Sextets” (1986), and “None but the Lonely Flute” (1991). The film contains interviews with the composer, his wife, Sylvia, and many former colleagues and students, including Princeton music professor Paul Lansky *73, retired professor J. K. Randall *58, professor emeritus Peter Westergaard *56, composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, concert pianist Robert Taub ’77, and jazz guitarist Stanley Jordan ’81.

 

Women’s soccer star Diana Matheson ’08 capped her Olympic run in dramatic fashion, scoring the game-winning goal in the 92nd minute of Canada’s bronze-medal match against France. The goal was Matheson’s first in the 2012 Olympics, and the medal is Canada’s first in the sport – and its first summer team-sport medal since 1936. Princetonians have now captured seven medals in London: one gold, two silver, and four bronze.

 

Coach David Blatt ’81 and the Russian men’s basketball team took one step closer to an Olympic medal Aug. 8, beating Lithuania 83-74 in the quarterfinal round. Russia faces Spain in the semifinals Aug. 10. In an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thomsen, Blatt, a longtime pro coach in Europe and Israel, admitted that joining the Russian team seemed like an unlikely move when he took the job six years ago: “You take an American growing up in the time of the Cold War, add to it the fact that I’m Jewish and with an Israeli passport, and then you time-warp me into the ex-Soviet Union as the head of the Russian men’s basketball team. It’s almost mind-boggling. And I lasted! I didn’t get my head chopped off in the first year or two.”

 

The U.S. women’s field hockey team will play its Olympic finale in the 11th-place game Aug. 10. The Americans’ lone win was an impressive one – a 1-0 victory against gold-medal contender Argentina – and Katie Reinprecht ’13 sees a bright future ahead for the national program. “We know we can compete with the best teams in the world,” she told Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “It’s a matter of learning how to finish games. … We’re a young team, and that’s something we’re still learning how to do.”

An eventful weekend in London included three more medals for Princeton Olympians and a pair of remarkable individual performances.

 

The medal-winning events began early Aug. 4 when Glenn Ochal ’08 and the U.S. men’s four rowed a solid race to earn bronze. The Americans were in third place at each of the splits and finished a comfortable four seconds ahead of fourth-place Greece. U.S. women’s single sculls competitor Gevvie Stone ’07 finished her Olympic run with a victory in the B final, placing seventh overall. Click here for official results.

 

In women’s team epee, Maya Lawrence ’02 and Susannah Scanlan ’14 contributed to a one-touch victory over Russia in the bronze-medal match. The win gave U.S. fencing its only medal in the London Olympics. Click here for NBC video of Lawrence and Scanlan discussing the match.

 

Men’s steeplechase star Donn Cabral ’12 reached the Olympic final in his event, placing eighth in the 15-athlete field, less than seven seconds behind gold medal winner Ezekiel Kemboi of Kenya. Click here for official results.

 

Today’s United States vs. Canada women’s soccer semifinal will put Canadian midfielder Diana Matheson ’08 in the international spotlight. Canada already has made history by reaching the final four, and a win over the Americans would guarantee the nation’s first Olympic medal in women’s soccer. The game will be shown live at 2:30 p.m. Eastern on the NBC Sports Network.

 

Coach David Blatt ’81 and the Russian men’s basketball team will move on to the elimination round after posting a 4-1 record in preliminary games. Click here for official results and schedules.

The U.S. women’s eight, one of the most dominant crews in international rowing, lived up to its reputation in the Olympic final Aug. 2, winning by a 1.47 second margin over second-place Canada. That was good news for three Princetonians: American Caroline Lind ’06, who earned her second gold medal, and Canadians Andreanne Morin ’06 and Lauren Wilkinson ’11, who reached the medal podium for the first time.

 

Also on the water at Eton Dorney today: Glenn Ochal ’08 and the U.S. men’s four won their semifinal race, earning a place in the gold-medal final Aug. 4. Gevvie Stone ’07 of the United States finished fourth in her women’s single sculls semifinal and will compete in the B final Aug. 4. Robin Prendes ’11 and United States men’s lightweight four completed their Olympic run, placing second in the B final (eighth overall).

 

Two other Princetonians rowed in gold-medal finals yesterday. In the women’s pair, American Sara Hendershot ’10 and partner Sarah Zelekna were just 0.2 seconds shy of winning bronze. What does 0.2 seconds look like in a rowing race? Check out this screen shot posted by The Daily Princetonian. Sam Loch ’06 and his Australian crew placed sixth in the men’s eight. Click here for official results and schedules.

 

Women’s epee fencer Maya Lawrence ’02 posted the U.S. team’s best result in the individual competition July 30, reaching the round of 16 with a 15-12 victory over Italy’s Mara Navarria. Lawrence lost her next bout, 15-12, to another Italian, Rossella Fiamingo. U.S. teammate Susannah Scanlan ’14 was eliminated in the opening round by Olena Kryvytska of the Ukraine. The United States women will open against Italy in the team epee competition Aug. 4. Soren Thompson ’05 is slated to compete in the men’s individual epee Aug. 1. Click here for official results and schedules.

 

All eight of Princeton’s alumni rowers have advanced in their respective events. On July 31, Gevvie Stone ’07 (United States) will row in the women’s single sculls quarterfinals and Robin Prendes ’11 (United States) will compete in the men’s lightweight four semifinals. Sara Hendershot ’10 (United States, women’s pair) and Sam Loch ’06 (Australia, men’s eight) will row for gold in their respective events Aug. 1. The women’s eight gold-medal final on Aug. 2 will feature three former NCAA champions from Princeton: Caroline Lind ’06 (United States) and Andreanne Morin ’06 and Lauren Wilkinson ’11 (Canada). Glenn Ochal ’08 of the U.S. men’s four will row in the semifinals Aug. 2. Click here for official results and schedules.

 

As the world turns its attention to the London Olympics, alumni from Princeton and several peer institutions will have a chance to compete for gold of a different kind on Facebook. The Alumni Association of Princeton University is one of nine groups participating in Alumpics 2012, a friendly social media contest that aims to find out which college has the most spirited alumni.

 

The competition includes five Ivy League schools plus Stanford and MIT. Beginning July 30, each school will post a daily alumni-related photo (or “alumpic”) on Facebook and ask alumni fans to click the “like” button. Medals will be awarded to the top three schools at the end of each day (weekdays only, through Aug. 10). At the end of the competition, the leader in the medal count will be named the Alumpics champion.

 

Visit the Alumni Association of Princeton University Facebook page to see today’s alumpic and join the contest.

Olympic rowing will be in the spotlight this weekend as six of Princeton’s eight rowers begin competition.

 

Four are participants in the women’s and men’s eights — the marquee events of international rowing. American Caroline Lind ’06, a 2008 gold medalist, is looking to return to the top of the podium. Canada, with Andreanne Morin ’06 and Lauren Wilkinson ’11 on board, will be among the leading challengers. On the men’s side, Sam Loch ’06 aims to pull Australia into medal contention.

 

The smaller U.S. boats also include Princetonians: Sara Hendershot ’10 will compete in the women’s pair, and Gevvie Stone ’07 is America’s representative in women’s single sculls. Portions of the rowing competition will be broadcast during NBC’s afternoon coverage July 28 and 29.

 

Sisters Julia Reinprecht ’14 and Katie Reinprecht ’13 will make their London debut when the U.S. women’s field hockey team faces Germany July 29 at the colorful Riverbank Arena, a blue-turf stadium on the edge of the River Lea. The game will be broadcast on the NBC Sports Network at 4:15 p.m. Eastern.

 

The opening ceremonies of the London Olympics are still a few days away, but one of Princeton’s Olympians is preparing for an early kickoff. Women’s soccer midfielder Diana Matheson ’08 and her Canadian teammates will face Japan, the 2011 Women’s World Cup champion, on July 25 at 4 p.m. Eastern on the NBC Sports Network. (Update: CTV also will have a live feed at 11:30 a.m. Eastern.) Matheson has battled back from a knee injury and appeared to be in top form during Canada’s recent tune-up game against New Zealand, looping a perfect shot over the opposing goalie and into the top left corner of the goal (click here for video). Last week, she told Ben Rycroft of the CBC that she had few doubts about being in shape for London. “It was just a matter of how many drugs I was going to have to be on – anti-inflammatories, I mean," she said.

 

 

Women’s epee standout Susie Scanlan ’14 was “made to hold a blade.” [Minneapolis Star Tribune]

 

Men’s four rower Glenn Ochal ’08 has a reputation for grueling, marathon workouts. [Philadelphia Inquirer]

 

The parents of Sara Hendershot ’10, a rower in the women’s pair, noticed her uncommon competitiveness at an early age. [Hartford Courant]

 

When the world’s top athletes begin competing in London next week, 15 Princetonians will be among them, adding to a remarkable legacy that includes 48 medals and more than a century of the Summer Olympians.

 

Princeton’s first visit to the Olympics was by far its most successful: Four track and field teammates in the Class of 1897 traveled to the 1896 Athens Olympics at the suggestion of history professor William Sloane, a friend and colleague of International Olympic Committee founder Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The Princeton students were part of a 27-athlete contingent from the United States.

 

Robert Garrett Jr. 1897 was the American team’s breakout star, earning two gold medals and two silver in the field events. Classmates Albert Tyler and Herbert Jamison also won silver medals, while Francis Lane just missed bronze in the 100-meter dash, finishing fourth.

 

Garrett, who later competed at the 1900 Paris Olympics, remains the most decorated Princeton athlete, with a total of six medals. Karl Frederick 1903 *1904 ranks second on the list with three gold medals (one individual, two team events) in shooting at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics.

Princeton professor and former State Department official Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80’s Atlantic cover story on “why women still can’t have it all” sparked debate and commentary online. [The Atlantic]

 

Departing Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels ’71 has found his next job: He will become the president of Purdue University. [Indianapolis Star]

 

Major League Soccer rookie Antoine Hoppenot ’12 scored a timely goal to lift the Philadelphia Union to victory in the U.S. Open Cup. [Philadelphia Inquirer]

 

Nick Martin *63, a former Hungarian water polo player who defected following the 1956 Olympics and eventually became a college professor, was profiled in a Sports Illustrated history feature (written by Alexander Wolff ’79). [Sports Illustrated]