Jemima Montag scooted home to win Olympic bronze in the 20km race walk on a scorching morning under the arches of the Eiffel Tower, improving on her sixth-place finish at the Tokyo Games.
The two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist finished strongly and was in striking distance of second-placed Maria Perez, but couldn’t quite catch the Spaniard, finishing just six seconds back. China’s Jiayu Yang took gold, a further 25 seconds up the road.
The 26-year-old is the first Australian to win a medal in the event since Jane Saville won bronze in Athens in 2004.
“This feels amazing,” she said. “I was in fifth at about 15km and I wasn’t even sure if I wanted it or not. But I took that risk to go into bronze and I made it. “I could see the medal in my head and I was like, ‘It is OK, I do not really want it’. And then I just heard my coach, ‘Get back on’. And when I started trying, people responded so well and I knew I could hold this.”
Montag said she was glad to deliver for her family, watching on the footpaths in central Paris. “I felt significantly more pressure this year because in Tokyo there were no spectators. Today, I had like 30 family and team members yelling my name. I wanted to make sure that I did well for them.”
Australia’s Rebecca Henderson finished in 31st, eight minutes back from the winner. Olivia Sandery recorded a DNF, pulling out late in the race. Montag and Henderson will compete in the race walk relay alongside Rhydian Cowley and Declan Tingay on 7 August. In the men’s individual race on Thursday, Tingay and Cowley finished 10th and 11th respectively, with a third Australian, Kyle Swan, 35th.
The Opals bounced back from defeat in their opening women’s basketball match of these Games by beating Canada in Lille 70-65. Australia led at every break, withstanding a late Canadian push to confirm the win and improve their standing in group B ahead of a final clash with hosts France. Sami Whitcomb led the scoring for the Opals with 19 points, plus 10 assists and 5 rebounds.
In 3x3 basketball, Australia’s trailblazing Gangurrus shot into medal contention on Thursday, with Alex Wilson starring against the United States to make it three straight wins. After a loss to Canada, a 21-19 win over Germany on Wednesday kick-started their campaign before a 21-15 win over China and 21-19 triumph over the Americans on Thursday morning at La Concorde.
Marissa Williamson Pohlman was eliminated from the 66kg boxing competition at North Paris Arena, going down to crafty Hungarian Anna Luca Hamori in the first round.
The Australian lost all three rounds according to all five judges and was unable to make the most of her powerful right hand against a mobile, showboating opponent who spent the fight shouting with every punch.
“I feel like she was good at what she was doing and [it] put me off balance, and things like that to try and look more dominant. And making noises so it made it look like she was throwing more punches and raising her hand and all that stuff,” Williamson Pohlman said.
Tom Wickham and Blake Govers dazzled as Australia confirmed an early end to New Zealand’s Olympic men’s hockey campaign in Paris. The Kookaburras’ 5-0 win on Thursday was a timely return to goal-scoring form and improved their startling head-to-head record to 35 wins and one draw from their last 38 clashes since Rio’s 2016 Games.
Former world No 1 Jason Day was surprised to be struck by a major bout of nerves on his Olympic golf debut as Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama set the pace at Le Golf National. Day was the best of the Australians after signing for a two-under 69 to be tied for 21st. And it would have been much better if not for a double-bogey on the 18th hole, an aberration he blamed on “two uncommitted swings”.
Tyler Wright booked an Olympics quarter-final after canny surfing in her surfing final heat in Tahiti. The two-time Australian world champion spent three days on the beach before returning to the water on Friday (AEST), dispatching Israel’s Anat Lelior 11.10 to 7.74. Her reward is a meeting with another one-time World Surf League (WSL) winner, Caroline Marks, later on Friday.
Sydney windsurfer Grae Morris will definitely leave the Paris Olympics with a medal in his keeping - but what colour is still to be determined. The 20-year-old is in the box seat to snag gold after he finished first in the qualifying series on Thursday, raced on the Mediterranean off Marseille in southern France. He will go into Friday’s (from 2200 AEST) three-sailor final to decide who takes the top prize.
Australia’s long-time success in the men’s four has come to a halt, missing the Olympic rowing podium for the first time in 16 years. Starting with the “Oarsome Foursome” in Barcelona in 1992, Australia had only missed medals once in the event but the crew finished last in the final at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium course.
