Team USA captured the gold medal in the women's eight rowing event at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London on Thursday. Heavily favored heading into the event, the American boat crew cruised easily to the win in the 2,000m race.
Led by coxswain Mary Whipple, the team jumped out to a lead of half a boat length by the 1,000m halfway point of the race. They held off the Canadian team, which was their closest challenger. Canada went on to win the silver, and the Netherlands took home bronze.
This was the second consecutive gold medal in this event for the American team. They have yet to lose a race in eight years. The US team trains in Princeton and features Abington's Susan Francia and South Jersey transplant Caroline Lind.
On the men's side, the lightweight four team was shutout of the medals in that event. South Africa won the gold there, with the UK winning silver and Denmark the bronze.
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