36. Helen Glover/Heather Stanning
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvf7LhgfiB0 Sport - Rowing Lizzie Armitstead may have won Britains first medal two days into the Olympic games, but the nations first gold medal didnt come until the fifth day of action, when a victorious performance in the womens coxless pair at Eton Dorney became Britains first ever womens rowing gold. The people responsible were the pair of Helen Glover and Heather Stanning, a former teacher and an army captain respectively, winning a close-fought final by two seconds. The pair were the first of many rowing success stories, with British athletes, male and female, medalling in nine of the sports fourteen disciplines, with other victorious pairs including Sophie Hosking and Katherine Copeland in the womens lightweight double sculls. With Stanning set for deployment to Afghanistan as part of her job, it remains to be seen when the pair will compete together again, but when they do, they will certainly be the pair to beat. 35. Leanda Cave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Lkw3SNxN44 Sport - Triathlon The triathlon, incorporating swimming, biking ride and running, is the ultimate test of human endurance, pushing the human body to its limit through three intense physical activities. Though the event is one of many that are held at the Olympics, thirty-four year old Leanda Cave elected to compete an alternative and more gruelling event instead. This was the Iron Man World Championships, which incorporate a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride and a 26 mile run one after the other. The length of the course makes the Olympic distance look like a walk in the park in comparison, with Cave taking gold in a time of just over nine hours, whilst also triumphing in the half-length Ironman 70.3 World Championship, itself an intense test of endurance and determination.