Dan's take

While Sebrle rolls to decathlon gold, great finishes highlight day in track

Athlete Analysis Dan O'Brien Roman Sebrle broke a 20-year-old Olympic record to win the decathlon. AP

The 1996 Olympic decathlon gold medalist and three-time World Champion is an SI.com analyst for the Games

Dan's take on the decathlon

Tuesday went just as I expected. Roman Sebrle was as consistent as ever. The only surprise was where Dmitriy Karpov was going to finish. Was Karpov going to improve in certain events, or was Bryan Clay going to be able to hold Karpov off? Clay he definitely did. He had a really good second day -- not a personal best, but a good day nonetheless -- and took the silver. I suspected Clay would win a silver or bronze, and he'd be the one battling Karpov. Obviously, Sebrle was clear and away the favorite.

The whole decathlon didn't play out the way I thought it was going to. I thought Tom Pappas would be a factor, but he dropped out after an injury to his foot, which was unfortunate. He got off to a bad start, and he got worse as it went along. The only bright spot for Pappas was the 400 meters. But as soon as I saw start of the decathlon, I knew Tom would struggle.

Sebrle, however, is a worthy champion. He's probably the most consistent decathlete, perhaps of all time. As a world-record holder, he's deserves the gold medal.

Tuesday's key event

Karpov had to settle for the bronze because of the pole vault. He only managed 4.60 meters, while Sebrle and Clay both went at least three heights higher. If Karpov vaulted a little better, he could've challenged Clay for the silver medal.

What does Pappas' future hold?

It was unfortunate, but Tom's first concern is his medical status. I'm not sure how bad his foot is. Things happen for a reason, and I think Tom will gain strength from this. We're put in situations where sometimes life dictates the decisions we have to make, and by struggling in this decathlon and getting injured, it's going to set up the next four years of Tom Pappas' life -- and that's training and trying to regain the form he was in last year.

Thoughts on the women's 400 meters

This was our second major upset of the Games. On Monday, it was Maria Mutola getting beat by Kelly Holmes in the 800 meters. Tuesday, Tonique Williams-Darling got off to a fast start and was able to hold off Ana Guevara of Mexico. It was a fantastic race. I know Guevara struggled with injuries in the early part of the season, so she wasn't as strong as she wanted to be. So when it was time for the final sprint in the last 100 meters, Williams-Darling was able to hold Guevara off.

Was Joanna Hayes' win in the 100-meter hurdles a surprise?

It wasn't a surprise to those inside the sport. Hurdles world champion Perdita Felicien crashed on the first hurdle, and that left he door wide open for Hayes.  With the time Hayes ran, I think she would've won the race anyway. Now, maybe having someone next to Hayes would've put some pressure on her, and she wouldn't have ran that fast, but that wasn't the case.

Thoughts on the men's 1,500 meters

It was just a fantastic finish. We've seen a lot of nice finishes in Athens. I thought coming off the last turn, Bernard Lagat had Hicham El Guerrouj in his sights. I thought for sure Lagat was going to run him down, but just when Lagat made his move with about 100 meters to go, he got 30 meters into it and then he started to struggle. It looked like El Guerrouj was going to relinquish the lead, but he didn't. It's just fitting that El Guerrouj gets to add the Olympic gold medal to his list of titles.

One more event that was impressive

Everybody expected the final three going for the gold medal in the women's pole vault to be Russians. But it came down to two Russians, and Yelena Isinbayeva was in trouble early on with about three heights to go, but she had a big make and went on to break the world record and win the gold. It was really exciting. Although I was excited about the decathlon, it seems like something always overshadows the decathlon, and Tuesday there were a couple of good events that did so.