2012 Summer Olympics

British Olympian Gymnast Sam Oldham’s Granny Finally has Cashed Her BetFred Checks

After a long and unnecessary ordeal, the grandmother of Great Britain Olympian bronze medal gymnast Sam Oldham finally has cash in hand for the entire €1000 owed to her by bookmaker BetFred.

You might recall that BetFred initially refused to pay Linda Aldred, 66, her £1000 winnings on a £5 bet that her grandson Sam would win an Olympic medal.  BetFred claimed the bet was on an individual medal and that the team, not Sam specifically, won the bronze.  Great Britain won its first Olympic medal in 100 years.

BetFred Pays Out on Sam Oldham’s Granny Olympic Bet Following Public Outcry

BetFred advised Gambling911.com late Thursday it had decided to pay out on an Olympic bet placed by the grandmother of Olympic gymnast Sam Oldham, ending a brief - albeit ugly - chapter in the company’s history. 

The British bookmaker had endured extensive negative press over a 48 hour period after it was learned they had refused to honor a bet placed by Oldham’s grandma, Linda Aldred, that would have paid out £1000.

Pay Grandma BetFred! Bookie Berated in London Press

The headlines these past 24 hours have been jarring.

From the Daily Express:  I’ve Won 200-1 Bet on My Grandson at Olympics….But Bookies Won’t Pay Up

From the San Francisco Chronicle:  British Bookmakers Won’t Pay Out Grandmother’s Winning Bet

Friends: ‘All Michael Phelps Thinks About is Gambling’

Friends of Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps claim the record gold medal winner “only thinks about gambling” these days, more specifically about playing poker. 

Gambling911.com just the other day featured a report on Phelps desire to become a poker pro. 

Record Breaking £80-100 Million Bet on London Olympics

The final tallies are out and the big winners at this year’s London Olympics was not the athletes but rather the online bookmakers. 

An estimated £80-100 Million is believed to have been wagered on the London Olympics, according to Sporting Index.   Initial forecasts called for somewhere between £20-£40m.

Mexico Pays 14-1 Odds with Olympic Soccer Gold Medal Win

Team Mexico takes home the gold after stunning heavy favorite Brazil in London Olympic football. 

The Brazil side had some into the Olympics as a slight EVEN odds favorite over Spain while Mexico had somewhat long odds at 14/1.  Mexico still paid $500 for every $100 bet in the Olympics Soccer Final against mighty Brazil. 

It is Mexico’s first Olympic gold in Soccer and, remarkably, Brazil is yet to win one.

London Olympics Betting August 10 – Top 5 Bets Include Men’s 4x100m Relay, Men’s 500

London Olympics betting for August 10 had Jamaica among the most wagered on at 1/5 odds to win the Men’s 4x100m Relay.  These odds were available at Bookmaker.eu and were subject to change. 

Team USA was the most bet on at 4/9 odds to win the Women’s 4x100m Relay while team USA was also favored to win the Men’s 4x400m Relay.

Olympic Men’s Basketball Betting Odds – August 8: Argentina vs. Brazil, Australia vs. USA

sp between Argentina and Brazil and Australia and the US along with Spain vs. France and Lithuania vs. Russia.   All odds were courtesy of Bookmaker.eu, which was giving away up to US$500 in FREE BETS here. 

Before you get too down on Australia, keep in mind that Team USA must cover by 33 points in this matchup.  80 percent of those betting on Australia vs. USA were still backing the huge favorite. 

Argentina vs. Brazil was promising to be more competitive with Argentina a -3.5 point favorite. 

Olympic Betting August 6 – Gymnastics Odds

Bookmaker.eu has a ton of Olympic Betting odds for August 6 with plenty of Gymnastics action on tap.  Qualified new customers receive up to US$500 in FREE BETS here. 

Favorites in Monday’s events include Javier Culson at 5/4 odds of winning the Men’s 400m Hurdles.  Felix Sanchez has very close odds of winning that event as well at 11/8.

Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake Odds to Win Mens 100m at London Olympics Sunday

Usain Bolt is widely expected to win the 100m at Sunday’s London Olympics yet, at 8/11 odds, there is still some pretty good value in placing that wager. 

Oscar Pistorius Odds to Win Olympic Men’s 400m at 100 to 1 After Amazing Feat

He may be a huge long shot to win the Men’s 400m but there is little doubt everybody, including sports bettors, will be rooting for South Africa’s Oscar Pistorius to win this big event.  Paddy Power was one of the bookmakers offering odds on Pistorius to win the 400m at 100/1.

London Olympics Betting Odds: Table Tennis, Fencing Men’s Team Sabre Outrights August 3

London Olympics betting odds for Table Tennis (both Men’s and Women’s) and Fencing Men’s Sabre outrights were available from BetOnline here. 

One would have to bet on the underdogs to upset China in both the Table Tennis events since China requires a ridiculous wager to be placed in order to make a small profit.  For example, you would have to bet $20 to win $1 (plus the $20 is refunded) for the Women’s Team outright and $15 for the Men’s outright. 

London Olympics Betting: Mens’ Four Rowing has Great Britain, Australia as Favorites

Olympics host country Great Britain has a shot at taking home the gold in Men’s Four Rowing.  Great Britain was coming in as the 4/6 favorite but with Australia a very close 5/4.  Greece had the next shortest odds at 14/1.  All betting odds available at Bookmaker.eu, which was offering up to US$500 in FREE CASH for qualified customers here. 

2012 London Olympics: Men’s Singles Tennis Odds for July 31, August 1

2012 London Olympics Men’s Singles Tennis odds for July 31 and August 1 were available at Bookmaker.eu, which was offering up to US$500 FREE BETTING for qualified new customers. 

The first match for those living in North America features Richard Gasquet v Marcos Baghdatis with Gasquet the 1/3 favorite.  This one goes off at 6:35 am EDT.