Simone Biles caps Paris Olympics ‘Redemption Tour’ with one last medal — silver in floor routine
PARIS (AP) — American gymnast Simone Biles didn’t get the golden sendoff she hoped. Biles earned silver in the floor exercise finals on Monday after a routine that included a couple of costly steps out of bounds. Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade became the first gymnast to beat Biles in a floor final in a major international competition, posting a score of 14.166 that finished just ahead of Biles at 14.133. It was Biles’ 11th Olympic medal. Jordan Chiles, a longtime friend of Biles, earned the bronze.
After water quality concerns canceled test runs, Olympic triathletes plunge into the Seine for relay
PARIS (AP) — Olympic triathletes plunged into the Seine River when the mixed relay event got underway after organizers said the bacteria levels in the long-polluted Paris waterway were at acceptable levels. Organizers on Sunday night made the decision to hold the event Monday morning with swimming legs in the Seine. The plan to hold the swimming portion of the triathlons and the marathon swimming events in the Seine was an ambitious one. Swimming in the river has, with some exceptions, been off-limits since 1923 because it has been too toxic.
Armand “Mondo” Duplantis breaks pole vault world record in gold-medal performance at Olympics
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Armand “Mondo” Duplantis broke his own pole vault world record Monday night at the Olympics, clearing 6.25 meters (20 feet, 6 inches) to cap his second straight gold-medal performance on the sport’s biggest stage. Duplantis cleared the mark on his third and final try. It marked the ninth time the Louisiana-born 24-year-old, who competes for his mother’s native Sweden, has broken the record, but the first time at the Olympics. Duplantis last broke the record April 20 in China. America’s Sam Kendricks won the silver medal and Emmanouil Karralis of Greece took the bronze.
France beats Egypt 3-1 and will face Spain in the men’s soccer final at Paris Olympics
LYON, France (AP) — Jean-Philippe Mateta scored twice as France advanced to the final of the men’s soccer tournament at the Paris Olympics with a 3-1 win over Egypt after extra time. France will play Spain in Friday’s final at Parc des Princes in a match that will ensure a first European gold medalist for 32 years. Egypt led through Mahmoud Saber’s 62nd-minute goal before Mateta equalized in the 83rd and sent the game into extra time. His second came in the 99th after Egypt’s Omar Fayed was sent off for a second yellow card. Michael Olise added France’s third in the 108th.
Americans have more depth than anyone at the pool, but gold medals harder and harder to come by
NANTERRE, France (AP) — No one can match America’s depth at the pool. That’s not about to change anytime soon. Then again, claiming the top step of the Olympic medal podium is no longer a given for U.S. swimmers. Nine days of thrilling competition at La Defense Arena wrapped up with the Americans barely pulling out the lead in the gold medal standings thanks to a victory in the final race The U.S. finished with just eight golds, its fewest since the 1988 Seoul Games and one ahead of its biggest rival, Australia. More notably, the rest of the world totaled more victories with 20 than the United States and Australia combined, the first time that’s happened since the 1996 Atlanta Games.
Competing for two: Pregnant Olympians push the boundaries of possibility in Paris
PARIS (AP) — Pregnant athletes are pushing boundaries in Paris by competing ever later into pregnancy. Egyptian fencer Nada Hafez revealed she’d been competing at seven months pregnant — and achieved her best result in three Olympics. Azerbaijani archer Yayalgul Ramazonova was revealed to have competed at a similar point in her own pregnancy. These stories are emerging as both attitudes and knowledge progress about how much women can do while pregnant. Doctors are increasingly saying, according to an expert in sports medicine, that if an athlete is healthy and has no complications, she can exercise, train and compete at a very high level.