Japan upsets powerful Spanish team
ROUNDUP: Brazil wins; Britain plays to draw in men's soccer
Japan upset Spain 1-0 on the first day of the men's Olympic football tournament on Thursday, while Brazil held on for a 3-2 victory over Egypt and host Britain had to settle for a 1-1 draw with Senegal.
Uruguay and Belarus also won as the tournament got under way with eight matches the day before today's opening ceremony.
Japan pulled off the surprising win after outplaying gold-medal favorite Spain, which went a man down in the first half and couldn't fight back.
Brazil got three first-half goals but nearly squandered the lead in the second, escaping with the victory to begin its quest for its first gold in Olympic football.
Britain's debut was spoiled by a late goal conceded in the draw with Senegal.
Japan got the winner in Glasgow when forward Yuki Otsu broke away from his marker during a corner in the 34th minute and the ball landed right at his feet for a simple tap-in past Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea.
Maroney has broken toe, OK to compete
LONDON -- A broken toe didn't stop McKayla Maroney from vaulting all summer. It sure isn't going to stop her at the Olympics.
The world vault champion aggravated a break in her right big toe during training last week, and she took it easy for the next few days. She was back to full strength at Thursday's podium training, the only opportunity gymnasts have to work on the competition floor before Sunday's preliminaries.
The American did at least a half-dozen vaults, sprinting full-speed down the runway and landing securely each time.
Opening ceremony tickets up for grabs
LONDON -- With less than 24 hours to go until the London Olympics opening ceremony, tickets to the biggest show in town are still available -- for a price.
The Danny Boyle-directed opening ceremony cost $42.3 million to produce and is expected to draw an estimated global television audience of 1 billion.
Olympic organizers confirmed late Thursday that the extravaganza has not sold out, saying that tickets are still on sale in the two highest price categories. Available tickets cost $3,157 or $2,510 apiece, organizers said.
Organizers would not say exactly how many tickets remain on sale, describing the quantity as "a few."
But The Guardian reported that a telephone ticket salesman told the newspaper that tickets are still available in groups of up to four.