LONDON (AP) — Alexander Dale Oen inspired a nation last July when he captured the 100-meter breaststroke world championship, then dedicated his triumph to 77 fellow Norwegians killed three days earlier in the country's worst peacetime massacre. He wept on the podium as Norway's national anthem played. In late April, Dale Oen died of heart disease at 26 while training in Arizona, months before he was to represent the best hope of Norwegian swimming at the London Games. South Africa's Cameron van der Burgh carries Dale Oen's memory into the pool, as do the three Norwegian Olympic swimmers and so many others at the Aquatics Centre touched by his compassion and competitive spirit. Dale Oen would have been alongside van der Burgh for the 100 breaststroke final Sunday night.
Olympic swimmers honor Alexander Dale Oen's memory
— Jul. 28 9:04 AM EDT
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Japan's Kosuke Kitajima leads compatriot Ryo Tateishi in a heat of the men's 100-meter breaststroke at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Saturday, July 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
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