RIO DE JANEIRO -- They teamed up for a carpool karaoke video. They planted their flag in Brazil. And when the Olympics are done, theyll be remembered as the latest in a long line of U.S. swimming powerhouses.So much for all those dire forecasts.Turns out, the less-than-glittering times at the U.S. trials were no indication of how fast they would swim once they got to the big stage. And all those who thought they were too inexperienced to shine on the international stage totally missed the mark.The Americans finished off the final night at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium by equaling their biggest medal haul in the last three decades.Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky & Co. made sure the U.S. stayed firmly atop the swimming world.We all know were part of a really special team, Ledecky said Saturday, five medals hanging from her neck after one of the greatest performances in Olympic history. We have such great depth in the U.S. in swimming, and its something we take great pride in. This is kind of our stage to show the world that.The Americans piled up 16 golds and 33 medals overall, matching their total from the 2000 Sydney Games.Phelps, of course, led the way. In what he again insists will be his final Olympics, the 31-year-old piled up five golds and a silver, bouncing back from a stunning upset by Singapores Joseph Schooling in the 100-meter butterfly to help power the U.S. to victory in the final event at the pool, the 4x100 medley relay.But no one was more dominant than the 19-year-old Ledecky, whose four golds included two world record-shattering performances. She joined Amy Van Dyken and Missy Franklin as the only American women to capture as many as four golds in a single games, matched Debbie Meyer as the only females to sweep the 200, 400 and 800 free, and also won silver anchoring the 4x100 free relay.What shes doing in the sport is ridiculous, Phelps said.Theres something to be said for the camaraderie displayed by the American team.During their final training session in Atlanta, a host of swimmers -- Phelps and Ryan Lochte among them -- took to the streets to record a James Corden-style carpool karaoke video . Even Ledecky took a turn behind the wheel, even though she still has just a learners permit.I was only at a gas station, she quipped, so I didnt think I was going to hurt anyone.When the swimmers got to Brazil, they received a history lesson from one of the coaches, Greg Meehan. At a meeting with the female athletes on the eve of the games, he told them about the Homestead Act, the 1862 law that encouraged Americas westward migration by providing free land to settlers.Well let Ledecky take it from there.We each had American flags and they printed out each of the events, and the people that were competing in each of those events came forward, had a little moment together, took the flag and stuck it through the paper and into the grass in the Olympic village, she said. We were just kind of staking our claim in Rio, and I think we kind of did that in the pool as well.In addition to Phelps and Ledecky, the biggest U.S. stars were Maya DiRado, who turned in the ultimate one-and-done with two golds and four medals overall; Ryan Murphy, who extended U.S. mens dominance of the backstroke; Simone Manuel, the first African-American woman to win a gold medal with her victory in the 100 free, plus another gold in the womens 4x100 medley relay; Lilly King, who backed up her brash diatribe against doping; and Anthony Ervin, the oldest member of the team at 35 and a gold medalist again in the 50 free -- 16 years after he first won the event in Sydney.Even with a hugely disappointing performance by Franklin, who didnt even make it to the final of her two individual events, the Americans still blew everyone away.There are several factors that go into the success of the U.S. program, starting with some simple numbers. The Americans have far more swimmers and resources to draw from than most nations, so its only natural they would dominate.Beyond that, Ledecky pointed to a U.S. trials format that sets up the team to perform well at the Olympics. Over eight nights in Omaha, just a month before the games and following the same schedule of events, swimmers earned their way onto the team before sellout crowds of more than 14,000 at every session.That was bigger than the crowds in Rio, where there were plenty of empty seats each night.Its an overly easy environment for us to swim fast in because weve been through our Olympic trials, which is way more pressure-filled than the Olympics, Ledecky said. Obviously the crowd here hasnt been that intimidating to us.Nothing was too intimidating to the Americans.---Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . 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The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book. NASSAU, Bahamas -- The return of Tiger Woods was more about the big picture than any of his big numbers.And that started with the sight of that red shirt on Sunday.Woods grumbled about three more double bogeys in the final round of the Hero World Challenge. Considering how badly he has felt in the 15 months since he last played, he still was able to keep it in perspective.It feels good to be back out here playing again, competing and trying to beat the best players in the world, Woods said. I missed it. I love it.He even loved some of his golf at Albany.Woods made 24 birdies, the most of anyone this week. He also had six double bogeys, three of them in the final round. The last one on the final hole, his third of the week on the 18th, gave him a 4-over 76. It was the highest score of the tournament, and he finished 15th in the 17-man field.The other players were not about to measure him by his score -- not yet, anyway.The whole world is watching a couple of rounds of golf, said British Open champion Henrik Stenson, who finished second to Hideki Matsuyama . Its great to see him back and healthy and playing. I want to see him up in contention and try to beat him when it matters the most.Give him three or four tournaments, maybe six tournaments, maybe around the Masters, he said. Its easy to overanalyze a very limited amount of golf.Rarely has a December event attracted this much curiosity. Woods, the dominant player of his generation, had gone 466 days since his previous tournament because of two back surgeries. The recovery at times made it difficult for him to walk and led him to wonder if he would ever play.Getting back to this point is beyond anything that Ive ever experienced in my lifetime, said Woods, who turns 41 at the end of the month. The pain issues that I had, it was rough. Quite frankly, there some pretty dire times where I just couldnt move.Woods showed no stress in his swing or in walking five straight rounds, starting with the pro-am. He had plenty of length, at times going after his driver with a little more pop to clear a bunker. He holed a few long putts . He missed a few short ones. At times, he looked like he had never been away for that long. And at times it did.Its kind of new to me again, the feel of pllaying, the feel of adrenaline in my system, hitting shots, Woods said.ddddddddddddOne day after he briefly pulled within two shots of the lead, it was clear early on this day would be a struggle.Woods was scrambling for pars instead of being in a position to attack pins. He twice made double bogey on a par 5, starting at No. 6 when he blasted out of the sandy area to the back side of a double green, forcing him to chip off the putting surface. Still, he rallied with three straight birdies to play the front nine in even par.He was never going to win the tournament -- Matsuyama was too far ahead -- but it was a chance to post a decent number and take more positives into what figures to be a two-month offseason. Instead, Woods added two more double bogeys and shot 40 on the back nine.He made his third double bogey of the week on the 18th hole without even going into the water. His tee shot landed in a thick palmetto bush, and he had to take a penalty drop to take it out. Just his luck, his drop in the sandy waste area settled right in front of the nub of another bush. He got that back to the fairway, went just over the green and took two putts from there for his 6.What he did here showed that hes certainly up for the task and his game is there. Hes ready to go, Jordan Spieth said. Even with Tiger, every time we set expectations, he exceeds them.Woods at least starts his climb from No. 898 in the world, the product of not playing since Aug. 23, 2015.He said he wants to play a full schedule in 2017 -- that typically means no more than about 20 a year -- and will look at his options over the next few weeks.I need to play more tournaments. Zero in 15 months is not a lot, so this is one, Woods said. I thought I made some good, positive things happen this week. Made a lot of birdies, also made a lot of mistakes. Thats something I know I can clean up.His caddie, Joe LaCava, offered the best perspective.I wasnt going to compare him to the rest of the field. Theyve been playing all year and theyve been playing great, LaCava said. Honestly, my goal was to get him through five rounds on his feet. That was big. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Stitched Jerseys China Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Store Youth NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Discount NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Camo Jerseys Wholesale NFL White Jerseys Wholesale NFL Camo Jerseys White NFL Jerseys Cheap Camo China NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Jerseys NFL China ' ' '