2012 was a busy year with the Olympic Games, a presidential election and tons of celebrity news.
Hollywood had a busy year with several couples getting married or engaged, having babies and some couples saw their marriages come to an end. Former N-Sync star Justin Timberlake married actress Jessica Biel and Ryan Reynolds and Gossip Girl Blake Lively also tied the knot. The young couple Miley Cyrus, 19, and Liam Hemsworth, 22, stunned the public when they announced their engagement earlier this year. Several couples saw their marriages crumble, among them were Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore and Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Rapper Jay-Z and pop star Beyonce Knowles had a baby girl and Jersey Shore star Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi had a baby boy with her fiancé.
A main focus of 2012 was the London Olympic games. The games were filled with ups and downs for the U.S. The women’s gymnastics team earned the nickname “The Fab Five” when they became the first U.S. women’s team to win the team competition since “The Magnificent Seven” in 1996. The team members also won several individual medals, Gabby Douglas placed first in the all-around competition, McKayla Maroney won the silver medal in the vault competition after a devastating fall, and Aly Raisman won the gold medal in the floor exercise. Michael Phelps was not as successful in the London Olympics as the Bejing Olympics four year ago but he did say the London Olympics would be his last Olympics. He leaves the Olympic scene as the most decorated Olympian in history. Swimmer Missy Franklin, 17, took the world by surprise with her dominating performance. Franklin won four gold medals and one bronze medal.
Another huge aspect of 2012 was the presidential race between President Barak Obama and Governor Mitt Romney. The race was close the entire year with neither candidate pulling ahead substantially in polls. The race was full of gaffes on both candidates’ parts. Obama’s “you didn’t build that” remark spread like wildfire but Romney’s gaffes spread even faster. Two of Romney’s biggest gaffes were in the presidential debates. The “I like Big Bird” remark in the first presidential debate and his “binders of women” remark in the third presidential debate rubbed many people the wrong way. While these comments hurt Romney the “47%” comment was probably the most detrimental for him. The end of the battle came in November with Obama winning re-election.
2012 was packed with exciting events and constant news, now it’s time to see what 2013 will bring.