Germany Without a Medal Through Three Days in London

It is early as just three days are in the books for the 2012 London Olympics. No different than in the past, each and every Olympic Games bring with it a number of surprising and disappointing performances.

But if there one thing that nobody is talking about and perhaps it is because it is a volcano waiting to explode, it is the fact that Germany, traditionally one of the strongest nations in the world both athletically and economically, has failed to earn a medal as of yet.

Of course it is only a matter of time before the Germans should begin to dominate once again. Since the unification of East and West Germany, the Germans have won 82 medals at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, 65 in 1996 in Atlanta, 55 in Sydney in 2000, 49 in Athens in 2004 and 41 in Beijing in 2008.

Without a doubt, there is a noticeable trend of the Germans not being as dominant as in the past. However, we are still talking about arguably the strongest country in Europe.

The Germans should be able to break the ice on Monday, but there is no guarantee.

Perhaps the best chance will come from Sascha Klein and Patrick Hausding, finalists in the men’s 10-meter platform synchronized diving competition.

Another who could medal is swimmer Paul Biedermann, who had the fifth fastest qualifying time in the 200-meter freestyle. However, he will also have to contend with American Ryan Lochte, who actually had just the sixth fastest time. Lochte has already won two medals.

Helge Meeuw will also contend for a medal. He will swim in the finals of the men’s 100-meter backstroke. Meeuw finished second in the 2009 World Championships, but had just the seventh fastest qualifying time in the semifinals.

The Germans will also have its men’s gymnastics team in the final of the overall competition. But it will have to contend with the likes of Russia, China and the United States, among others.

Based on past indicators, Germany is likely to leave London in two weeks as one of the leaders in the medal count.

But it certainly can’t be easy for German fans to be sitting at home waiting to get that first medal