EVEN IF YOU DON’T WATCH SWIMMING, THIS WAS STILL INCREDIBLE

With most of the political world grinding to a halt for the Olympics, there is even less going on this week than there was last week. And while a number of the “sports” in the Olympics are completely ridiculous — Women’s Air Pistol? Badminton? — it’s still a wonderful opportunity to be nationalistic are root for America (because we’re better than everyone else).

Like last night’s men’s 4×100m free relay when swimmer Michael Phelps’ quest to become the first person to ever win eight gold medals — in anything — in a single Olympics almost came to end.

The French team came into the race major favorites, so confident that they even bragged that they would “smash” the U.S. swimmers including Phelps.

After the first three of four legs, the frogs had built a sizable lead and it looked as if they might be able to hold off the Americans. And with only 50 meters left in the race, with the French leading by more than a body length, the announcers began to call the race over.

But miraculously, in one of the most amazing athletic feats I’ve ever witnessed, American Jason Lezak came from a distant second to catch French swimmer Alain Bernard. And with the final stroke, Lezak inched passed Bernard and touched the wall mere milliseconds before the Frenchman, earning gold for the U.S. and shattering the previous world record.

Truly an amazing moment for America.

The video above is a “behind-the-scenes” look at the “pandemonium” as observed by NBC’s Mel Stewart. To view the entire race as it aired last night, click here (I tried to embed it, but had no luck).