Thank you for joining the whole team for today’s coverage. It has been another busy day with highlights included Team USA winning women’s gymnastics gold, Team GB retaining their 4x200m freestyle relay gold and Nathan Hales winning trap shooting gold. Below are some of the stories of the day. We will be back tomorrow morning, have a good rest of the day.
And here is the swimming action:
Have you recovered from that thrilling Dan Evans and Andy Murray win yet? Well you can relive the action here and get your heart racing again:
Some of the best pictures from day four:
Paraguay have beaten Mali 1-0 in the final men’s football match of the day. Now the pool stage is over we now what the quarter-finals will look like in the men’s competition. They will be played on August 2 and were confirmed on the Olympics website as:
Morocco vs USA
Japan vs Spain
Egypt vs Paraguay
France vs Argentina
So how is the medal table looking after another gold rush today? Click below to see where your team is in the standings:
In the men’s football Japan found a winner their match against Israel with a late goal from Mao Hosoya.
The triathlon organisers say there is a 60% chance of the event going ahead tomorrow because of the water quality in the river Siene. They are going to do tests on the water in the early hours of tomorrow morning.
One of the biggest stories of the day was Team USA winning the women’s gymnastics team final. Simone Biles the star in that team but each athlete in it did their part in winning that gold medal. Have a read of their triumph here:
Simon McMahon has emailed and said:
Evening Sarah. Congratulations Duncan Scott, what an achievement. Andy Murray and Dan Evans though. OMG. You couldn’t make it up. Who’s gonna play them in the Murray biopic..?
What a good question. Maybe Paul Mescal for Dan Evans and Stephen Merchant for Andy Murray? Any suggestions are welcome.
The British men have collected their gold medal to a huge applause and they clap their fans back. Matt Richards is getting quite emotional just before the anthem is played.
Let’s check in on the men’s football shall well? Paraguay still lead Mali 1-0 and Israel and Japan are still drawing 0-0. Earlier the USA beat Guinea 3-0 and you can catch up with that here:
Here is the moment Dan Evans and Andy Murray went through:
The Olympic dream LIVES ON for Dan Evans and Andy Murray! 🇬🇧👏
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 30, 2024
The @TeamGB duo are into the quarter-finals at #Paris2024.
The show goes on for Murray!#BBCOlympics #Olympics pic.twitter.com/Dp0qz6Xnfp
A fun fact for you, that gold medal for Duncan Scott in the GB 4x200m freestyle relay takes him level with Sir Chris Hoy for the record amount of Scottish Olympic medals with seven.
I realise now I haven’t told you who won silver and bronze in the 4x200m freestyle relay. The USA won silver and Australia bronze, both has impressive swims themselves.
Evans and Murray have now saved seven match points across two matches to keep this Olympic dream rolling. Murray is sat in his chair, head in hands in utter disbelief.
A ginormous overhead hit and Murray and Evans erupt. The pair embrace and Murray says “yes, mate, yes, thank you!” His final professional competition rolls on. They win 6-4, 6-7, 11-9. Huge.
Evans and Murray through in doubles
WOW!!
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Now Evans and Murray have match point, is this it?
Murray doesn’t want his career to end just yet, what a shot from the British star! Two more match points saved by the British pair, absolutely huge. We are at 9-9.
Oh my how things have turned in the tennis, the Belgians have match point at 9-8.
Team GB win 4x200m freestyle relay gold
Britain’s first gold in the pool! That was a hotly contested relay.
The first 200m is won by Britain’s James Guy. What a start, he was half a body length ahead.
The second 200m saw Britain slip to fourth with Australia, America and Germany ahead but Tom Dean regained the lead in the final 50m of his 200m.
Matt Richards took the third 200m and he maintained the lead for Britain but Duncan Scott still had work to do heading into the final 200m.
The first 100m for Scott was impressive but America and Australia were on his heel. The crowd are deafening and Britain have done it!
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In the tennis we are 6-6 with Murray on the serve but Evans hits the net and the Belgians are ahead again at 7-6. So back and forth here.
These two just don’t want to be separated do they? They go 5-5 but now Evans and Murray have nudged ahead again to go 6-5. It is the first to 10.
The Belgian pair have fought back to 4-3, they are remaining hot on the heels of Evans and Murray at the moment.
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Murray is looking electric in this tie break, he is absolutely in control as the British pair lead 3-2. In the pool the teams are coming out for that freestyle relay, can Team GB retain their crown? They are among the favourites.
Evans and Murray race to a 2-1 lead in the tie break to settle this match with both pairs winning a set each already.
One man not in that 4x200m freestyle relay is France’s Léon Marchand as he just qualified for the 200m breaststroke final.
Okay going to try my best to bring you everything from Evans and Murray and the upcoming men’s 4x200m freestyle final. I’ll type as fast as possible!
Murray and Evans are furious as they think Evans’ serve hit the net before the ball is called out, they protest but it is given in favour of the Belgians. It’s set point for them now and the Belgians take it because of a double fault from Evans. It goes to a match breaker – wow.
Evans’ emotions are in a rollercoaster at the moment. He roars as they get another match point but almost smashes his racket as the next point foes the way of their opponents and it’s 8-8. You can’t take your eyes off of this.
Evans this time whacks it into the advertising board and now the Belgians have set point. A really well orchestrated point by Evans as he dictates play and Vliegen sees it out, 7-7.
Evans raising his arms and roars as Vliegen hits a point out and suddenly the Brits have match point. But the Belgians perform well under pressure to see it to 6-6, what a battle this is.
Murray was aggressive at the net but Gille has a forehand winner to put the Belgian pair ahead for the first time in this tie break, 4-3 up. But a mishit from Vliegen sees it 4-4. It’s soon 5-5 with the crowd potentially more behind Evans and Murray here, the cheers slightly louder when they win their points.
Apologies, I lost my bearings for a second with the doubles, if Evans and Murray lose this tie break we will go straight back into another tie break but that one would be first to 10 for who wins this. The tie break stands now at 3-3.
So can Evans and Murray sew up this match? Gille and Vliegen are serving first in this tie break but concede the first point. The Brits compound it with a second point but a double fault from Evans gifts the Belgian pair a point. A lovely played long shot from Murray sends the Brits 3-1 up in this tie break but the Belgians hit right back. 3-2 to Evans and Murray as things stand.
Evans and Murray have taken it to a second set tiebreak. Win this and they are through to the quarters, lose it and they have another set to go.
I feel like I am copying and pasting her but Evans and Murray are once again serving to stay in the second set. Gille and Vliegen held and so are 6-5 up now.
Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen gets emotional while collecting his gold medal as the Irish anthem plays. What a moment.
In the second semi-final for the women’s 100m freestyle it was Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan who posted the fastest time with 52.75 seconds. Team GB’s Anna Hopkin just misses out on the final.
Evans and Murray hold serve and they are 5-5 in the second set now.
Evans and Murray are serving to stay in the second set after Gille and Vliegen go 5-4 up. The British pair won the first set and so this would go to a tie break.
New Zealand’s Portia Woodman-Wickliffe hung up her international boots after winning the gold medal in the sevens competition today and she has reflected on her glittering career.
The star has won two Rugby World Cups and two gold medals.
“Just proud of the person I’ve become, proud of the journey I’ve had, the growth I’ve had,” she said of her career.
“I’ve gone from a shy, netball girl to a rugby player who is now world renowned.
“And I’m not finished with rugby. I’ll be here. I’ll be hanging around the sidelines might be talking in the commentary, who knows? But I’m not finished with rugby. I just won’t be on the field.”
Italy win women's epee team fencing gold
Italy have taken the women’s epee team fencing gold with a 30-29 win over France. The final went to sudden death with the two teams hard to separate but Italy edged out their opponents.
Poland took the bronze with a 32-31 win over China.
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We are really getting to the business end of the day so bare with me while I try and keep up with the medals coming in.
Kaylee McKeown told Channel Nine: “Expectation is a privilege and if you get the privilege, it is special. I like to think I have a super power and that’s my dad. I believe he was with me tonight. Jerks, I’m just over the moon.”
For all the action on her Olympic record win, click here:
Team GB’s Anna Hopkin finished sixth in her 100m freestyle semi with a time of 53.74 seconds. The winner of the semi was Hong Kong China’s Siobhan Bernadette Haughey with 52.64.
“I heard Nathan when I walked out, in this stadium an my twin is all I hear,” Daniel Wiffen told the BBC.
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In the pool next up we have the women’s 100m freestyle semi-finals. in the first semi Team GB have Anna Hopkin.
I’ve had one eye on the men’s tennis while spinning all the other Olympic plates – could become an Olympic sport itself – and the Belgium pair are slowly growing into this but is it too little too late? Evans and Murray haven’t been perfect but they have been more clinical, Gille and Vliegen letting some points they should win go through their fingers. Evans and Murray leading 6-3, 3-3.
In the men’s football Paraguay lead Mali 1-0 and Israel and Japan are drawing 0-0.
In the earlier games France beat New Zealand 3-0 and the USA won 3-0m against Guinea.
A quick dip into the men’s tennis and Evans and Murray and Gille and Vliegen are tied 2-2 in the second set after the British pair too the first set 6-3/
That is the first time an Irish man has won an Olympic swimming gold, sensational. Silver went to American Bobby Finke and bronze to Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri.
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Ireland's Wiffen wins 800m freestyle gold in Olympic record
What a race from Ireland’s man!
New Zealand’s Eilijah Winnington took an early lead and set the pace for the rest of the field but he then slipped down the field. Daniel Wiffen was on Winnington’s tail and then over took him.
However, the lead kept exchanging between Gregorio Paltrinieri and Wiffen but the Irish star found the win in the end.
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Men’s 800m freestyle final now, Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen was the fastest semi-finalist and so he goes in lane four.
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Dan Evans and Andy Murray have taken the first set 6-3 in a performance which is overall impressive so far. They have had some wobbly moments but overall they are doing enough to get this one done.
Americans Regan Smith and Katharine Berkoff took the silver and bronze respectively.
McKeown wins 100m backstroke gold with Olympic record
What an electric swim! American Regan Smith and Canadian Kylie Masse led at 50m but Australia’s Kaylee McKeown had a phenomenal last 50m to win.
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Next up is the women’s 100m backstroke final and it contains world record holder Regan Smith and Olympic record holder Kaylee McKeown. This one should be electric.
The winner of the second men’s 200m butterfly is Hungary’s Kristof Milak with a time of 1:52:72. Léon Marchand’s place in the final has been confirmed.
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In the men’s tennis Evans and Murray are 4-1 up in the first set, the first game win from Gille and Vliegen coming on their own serve. The British athletes looking in control so far.
A huge cheer for Léon Marchand as he walks out for this semi-final. It was a hugely impressive swim throughout, the Frenchman was pushed all the way but he does finish fastest in the semi – all but confirming his place in the final. He records a one minute and 53,5 seconds.
France’s swimming poster boy Leon Marchand in the men’s 200m butterfly semi final right now, all of that action to come.
Matthew Richards has missed out on the 100m freestyle final. The second semi was won by China’s Zhanle Pan with a time of 47.21 seconds.
In the men’s tennis doubles, Evans and Murray have raced to a 3-0 lead in the first set against Gille and Vliegen. So far this is much less stressful than the last time we saw the British pair in the court – saving five match points and then winning it themselves.
In the swimming pool, the first men’s 100m freestyle semi has just concluded and Team GB’s Matthew Richards has posted a time of 48.09 seconds. The winner of the semi was Australia’s Kyle Chalmers with 47.58. I will let you know if he qualifies for the final shortly.
Dan Evans and Andy Murray fought to hold serve in the first game and they have broken Gille and Vliegen in the second. What a start to the match for the British pair.
The British women’s gymnastics team have spoken the BBC.
Kinsella said: "I am so proud of this team, we thought we did it but I am super proud of the girls.”
Mace added: “I think as a team we did well, we couldn’t have given any more.”
Rebecca Downie said: “We said from the start we were going to go all out. We left everything out on the floor.”
In the men’s tennis doubles Dan Evans and Andy Murray have started the match on serve and have to defend a break of serve immediately. They do to take the game to deuce but Gille and Vliegen high five as they win advantage. Back and forth to deuce we go but the British pair do hold. A good fight early on.
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Italy have taken silver in the women’s gymnastics and Brazil have won bronze. Team GB just miss out.
I have not received confirmation on silver or bronze places yet but I’ll bring those imminently.
Team USA win women's gymnastics gold
USA have their gold and star of the sport Simone Biles is among those to have a medal around her neck. The team’s gold was sealed after a superb floor routine by Biles, including a double straight somersault.
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Italy have got confirmation they are on the medal podium in the women’s gymnastics, they just don’t know what colour it will be yet. It is history, I believe it is the first time they have been on the team podium in a very long time. They are absolutely ecstatic. That has made it that much harder for GB to medal though.
Team GB’s medal hopes are still alive here in the women’s team gymnastics. Alice Kinsella has just finished on beam and she was very happy with it, she jumped in celebration after his dismount.
The men’s tennis doubles action does not stop yet. We have a British pair in Andy Murray and Dan Evans facing Belgium Joran Vliegen and Sander Gille. This is potentially Murray’s last-ever professional match. All four athletes are now out on court.
In the men’s football France lead New Zealand 1-0 and the USA are beating Guinea 2-0. In the earlier matches, Morocco beat Iraq 3-0 and Argentina beat Ukraine 2-0 to reach the quarters.
The celebrations among the New Zealand players is emotional to watch. They embrace each other, scream and jump around. Portia Woodman-Wickliffe has just capped off a very impressive few years. Two Rugby World Cup wins and two Olympic golds.
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New Zealand win women's sevens gold
A close battle in this final sees the defending champions retain their crown. Canada will be disappointed not to get the gold but it is still their best-ever finish in the competition at the Olympics. Heroic ends to both these teams’ campaigns.
The conversion was missed so the lead is just seven points here. If Canada can score and get the kick they’ll extend this game.
The clock continues to tick down in this gold medal women’s rugby final and New Zealand still have a 14-12 lead. Hang on, Hirini makes a superb break and the team are on the attack. Waaka goes down the right and crashes over. New Zealand have a commanding 19-12 lead with the conversion and just over a minute to go.
Nadal and Alcaraz into quarters
The Spanish pairing in the men’s tennis doubles have progressed into the quarter-finals after a battle with Dutch pair Griekspoor and Woolhof. Nadal and Alcaraz won 6-4, 7-6, 10-2.
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Five minutes to go and Canada have an attack. But before it starts Portia Woodman-Wickliffe leaves the pitch as she’s replaced. What a star of the game.
New Zealand start the second half so well with an immediate try through Blyde, the conversion is good and they lead Canada 14-12.
Thank you John, I am back and with my return comes the second half of the women’s rugby sevens final. Can Canada cause a shock here? Let’s find out.
Canada score again! Corrigan speeds away, and almost falls over the line. Brilliant. Another steal. 12-7, as the conversion doesn’t go in. So, that’s half-time, and it’s back to Sarah Rennie.
But Chloe Daniels breaks away with an interception to level the scores, she goes under the posts and that’s converted. Canada are level at 7-7. All to play for in the gold medal game.
Meanwhile in Paris 2024’s Tuesday happy hour, it’s the women’s sevens final and New Zealand are leading Canada 7-0 as the first half ticks down.
After three rotations, it’s the beam to come for Team GB, in bronze, with a gap to Canada in fourth. Georgia Mae-Fenton, Becky Downie and Alice Kinsella are the trio to take it home for Britain. They have done so well to get to this point. China, of all countries, are in fifth, and there are tears in the eyes of their gymnasts. That’s heartbreaking to see.
Alcaraz and Nadal are in a second-set tie-break, and it’s not going well, at 4-1 down, then 4-2, then 6-2, and they lost the set to go to a final set.
Needless to say, Simone Biles just aced the beam after Rebecca Downie of Team GB just pulled off a fine performance in the uneven bars. Behind Team USA, the teams are jockeying for medals. Downie got 14.93 – the highest score – Biles finds herself embarrassed in the British gymnast’s company. She only got 14.366…
USA take the bronze medal in women's rugby sevens
Hello…..Team USA stage an amazing comeback, a remarkable breakaway try, and it’s converted. Australia are stunned. It was Alex Sedrick who scored and converted.
HISTORY 🥉
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) July 30, 2024
The women of @USARugby take home their first Olympic medal!#ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/q0508qTLop
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This is going to the wire, though the Australians are seeing far more territory. Are the US team biding their time? Levi is back on now. Australia bring on Sharni Smale for her last ever appearance. And Teagan Levi storms on, and passes to Maddison who goes over at the corner. The conversion is missed. But that makes it 12-7 with just a minute to play.
With five minutes to play, that bronze medal match remains at 7-7 between Australia and the USA.
James Greatorex gets in touch: “Just a quick clarification on your live blog on the gymnastics: The US fans weren’t cheering for the Chinese gymnast’s fall. There’s four routines going at the same time, they were cheering for Jordan Chile’s stuck landing on her bar routine.”
Unfortunately timed, then.
It’s a rowdy old crowd at Roland-Garros as Nadal and Alcaraz continue to be held in the second set by Griekspoor and Koolhof.
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After two gymnastics rotations, Team USA are winning, Team GB are in fourth.
87.432 USA
- 3.102 Italy
- 3.966 China
- 5.501 Great Britain
- 5.834 Romania
- 6.267 Brazil
- 6.666 Canada
- 7.867 Japan
This sevens bronze game is now at 7-7 at half-time. The Australians are down to six players, Levi Teagan having been given a yellow and been sin-binned. But not for much longer.
The gymnastics – could Team GB be in for a medal? The plan is to go for difficulty, and Ruby Evans just pulled off a beauty in the vault, her 13.96 only coming because her landing with only slightly skewiff.
The rugby sevens, and Australia, in the bronze match, where they didn’t expect to be, are 7-0 up on the USA. Alcaraz and Nadal, bythe way, are going with serve in their game with the Dutch pair.
Simone Biles just nailed it on the high bars, and a gold medal looks likely to be heading her way, and that of Team USA. 14.400 for her. The crowd seems slightly underwhelmed by that score.
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Good evening. Let’s start with a point of order. Those American fans – and some locals – cheering loudly when a Chinese gymnast slips from the beams were not acting in particularly Olympian spirit. That’s a poor show from them.
I am handing over to John Brewin now for the next hour so I can grab a cuppa, enjoy!
In the women’s rugby sevens, France have finished fifth after beating China 21-7. The bronze medal match coming up shortly between the USA and Australia. The Aussie team will be favourite for the medal.
Alice Kinsella from Team GB is on the floor now in the women’s gymnastics. A lovely tumble into a triple twist to start. She has a step out of a double twist but this is looking like a strong performance from the athlete. A reminder Team GB are not expected to medal in this event. She scored a 13.6.
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In the women’s gymnastics the first round of the team event is over and the USA are in the lead with 44.1. China are in second and Italy are third. Team GB are down in seventh.
Some news from earlier in the day:
In the men’s football, Morocco still lead Iraq 3-0. The other match between Argentina and Ukraine see Argentina lead 1-0. If these scorelines stay as they are it will be Morocco and Argentina going through to the quarter-finals.
A slight shock. Team USA dropped their 3x3 women’s basketball opener against Germany, losing 17-13. The US are looking to retain gold after winning the inaugural 3x3 tournament in Tokyo. And they raced out to an early 5-0, thanks largely to the crafty play of Hailey Van Lith. But they struggled with turnovers throughout the game, and saw their lead evaporate as Germany’s trio hit four two-point shots from the outside. Germany entered the tournament as long shots, but picked off the experienced and decorated US side in their opener. Group play resumes tomorrow with the US taking on Azerbaijan and Germany facing Australia.
Joe Pearson has got in touch and said:
I have really been enjoying the Sevens in this Olympics. It’s actually my first exposure to the sport, and I think it’s great! Oh and for snack chat, I have sat down for a nice lunch of a som tum salad from the local Thai place.
You will be very happy to know there’s a lot more sevens action to come tonight, including the medals matches. I also have to admit I’m jealous of the snacks you have, I have some strawberries accompanying me.
In the men’s tennis, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have taken the first set 6-4 against Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof. The second set has just got underway.
Over to the women’s judo now as we have another gold medal confirmed. In the -63kg final Slovenia’s Andreja Leski, who beat the defending champion Clarisse Agbégnénou in the semis, has won gold after beating Mexico’s Prisca Awiti Alcaraz. France’s Agbégnénou won bronze.
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Women’s gymnastics: Here is Simone Biles. All eyes will be on her. She opts for her easier vault but it was flawless aside from a step back on her landing. Huge, especially because it was the apparatus she struggled with at the last Games. She records a score of 14.9 – the highest of her team.
Women’s gymnastics: China’s Qiu Qiuyen is on the uneven bars and there is a wobbly start with some gasps from the commentators. She has recovered well with a half turn and the dismount is almost perfect.
If you’d like a more in depth look at this competition you can follow the live here:
Women’s gymnastics: The USA are on the vault now with Jade Carey. That is a clean run there, with a fantastic landing.
Women’s gymnastics: A first vault for the Italians through Esposito and it’s a good double twist with just one step back on the landing.
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Women’s rugby sevens: Team GB have beaten Ireland 28-5 and they finish seventh in the competition. Not what they would have wanted pre-Games but they have finished with a win.
Women’s rugby sevens: Team GB’s Ellie Kildunne was given a yellow card for a deliberate knock on and Ireland have gone over for their second try through Boles, the conversion good. 28-14 with one restart left.
In the women’s gymnastics Ruby Evans from Team GB is first up on the floor. A clean first tumble and a lovely double straight to follow it up. A full twisting front and a double spin adds to the difficulty to her routine. A double backflip caps it off, a great routine. Her score from that 13.1.
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Women’s rugby sevens: Ireland knocking on the door now as they keep coming through the phases but a loose pass rolls into touch.
In the women’s gymnastics team event the athletes are just warming up on all of the apparatus. Everyone will be looking at Team USA and in particular the star that is Simone Biles.
Women’s rugby sevens: It is foul play by Jones and she has been given a yellow card.
Women’s rugby sevens: Lane is lifted into the air by a teammate as the game restarts but she tilts and almost crashes to the floor but manages – somehow?! – to stay in the air. There’s another check for foul play a few phases later by Jones.
Women’s rugby sevens: Jones finds Cowell and she makes a break to dot down, the conversion good and GB are starting to run away with this now. 28-5 with five minutes to go.
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Women’s rugby sevens: As the second half gets underway with GB’s Boatman off after a concussion worry, she tearfully leaves the field as that is her Olympics over with this the team’s final game.
The women’s team gymnastics event is just starting with all the teams being introduced. We will have a focus on that once the athletes get underway.
In the men’s tennis doubles Nadal and Alcaraz are tied 3-3 against Griekspoor and Koolhof in the first set. A real battle developing there.
Women’s rugby sevens: It’s half-time and just before the break Jones adds another try with the conversion added. GB lead Ireland 21-7.
Women’s rugby sevens: Shekells makes a huge run down the right, she looks left and right but no one can stop her. A try at a good time just before half-time and the conversion is over. GB 14-7 Ireland.
Women’s rugby sevens: Ireland take their opportunity and they are over, conversion added and it’s 7-7 against Team GB.
Women’s rugby sevens: We have two minutes left of the first half. Ireland almost hit right back with a storming run but GB’s defence holds strong for now, but there’s a player offside so Ireland can go again – they opt for a scrum.
Meg Jones makes a great break as she makes a great run, provided after a hole was left in the Irish defence. The conversion is added and GB are 7-0 up.
We are checking for foul play here as a high tackle was made by Flood. This could result in a sending off. There is foul play but there’s mitigation so there’s a yellow card for Flood – she is off for two minutes.
It’s been a back and forth start to this game of women’s rugby sevens. GB gave away early possession after a knock on but now Ireland have given away two quick penalties. GB off on an attack.
Remember, this game decides whether Team GB or Ireland finish seventh or eighth in the competition.
Okay, I will keep you updated on the tennis but we have time to squeeze in a focus on GB’s women’s rugby sevens before the women’s gymnastics starts in 15 minutes. Kick-off in the rugby coming in a few minutes.
Nadal and Alacaraz could break here as they get to 40-30, some whispering between Griekspoor and Koolhof sees some great team work to outplay the Spanish pair and we head to deuce. The Dutch get the advantage with a long shot from Alcaraz but an expert shot from Nadal on the next point takes it back to level pegging. Back and forth to deuce we go but the Dutch pair hold serve.
Yet another shock at the Olympics as the USA have been beaten 17-13 in the women’s 3x3 basketball by Germany. Wow.
Over to the men’s -81kg judo now and Japan’s Nagese Takanori has won gold after a hugely dominant final against Georgia’s Tato Grigalashvili. The Japanese athlete won the final 11-0.
A flawless service game levels the men’s doubles 1-1 in the first set between Griekspoor and Koolhof and Nadal and Alcaraz. Alcaraz’ serve was powerful, claiming a few aces in that game.
In the men’s hockey, Argentina lead New Zealand 1-0 in their pool B encounter. The game has around 25 minutes to play.
Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof have won the first match of this men’s doubles match. Nadal and Alcaraz pushed them at 30-30 but the Dutch pair saw out a steady service game.
In the men’s football Morocco are leading Iraq 3-0 in the first half. Meanwhile the game between Argentina and Ukraine remains 0-0 as things stand.
It’s clear from the cheers in the crowd who the spectators want to see this one, Rafael Nadal is always going to be a fan favourite at Roland Garros. His partner Carlos Alcaraz has already been dubbed the ‘Prince of Clay’ so he is a fan favourite too. A roar erupts as the Spanish pairing win the first point of this match, against serve.
Here is some news from elsewhere in the Games while we wait for the tennis to begin:
Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz and his men’s doubles partner – 22-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal – are now out on court. We have three minutes until their game gets underway. I’ll focus on that for the start of that game – as well as bringing you results from elsewhere – before turning a spotlight to the women’s gymnastics.
Ah my understanding on when Andy Murray and Dan Evans would be out on court may have been a tad optimistic. We may be looking of more of a time of 5.30-6pm BST.
In the women’s canoe slalom heats, Team GB’s Mallory Franklin has qualified for Wednesday’s semi-final with a time of 152.41 seconds.
In the men’s tennis doubles there are some blockbuster matches coming up this evening. Team GB’s Andy Murray and Dan Evans will be taking on Belgium’s Joran Vliegen and Sander Gille.
Elsewhere in the event, Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz are playing the Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor and Wesley Koolhof. I’ll bring you updates from both and also signal when they start, I believe Murray and Evans are due on court in the next half hour or so.
So confirmation on the women’s rugby sevens result between Japan and Brazil, the Japanese have beaten their opponents 38-7 to finish ninth at the Games.
A women’s rugby sevens story here:
In the women’s rugby sevens the final matches are taking place to establish where each team finishes. South Africa have beaten Fiji 21-15 in the placing 11-12 final. Japan are currently leading Brazil 26-0 in the placing 9-10 final. Team GB will play in the placing 7-8 final at 5pm BST before the bronze medal match and gold medal match later on this evening.
You wait for a shock all day and three come along at once. This time it is in the women’s judo where the reigning -63kg Olympic champion Clarisse Agbegnenou has lost her semi-final after her opponent Andreja Leski scored with 15 seconds remaining. A huge moment on day four.
Did you miss any action with Team GB’s latest gold medal? It came in the men’s trap shooting final with Nathan Hales setting a new Olympic record. Read all the details:
Now a look at the men’s BMX freestyle and world champion Kieran Reilly has qualified top in his qualifier ahead of tomorrow’s final. He scored an average of 91.21 over his two runs in a confident display.
The men’s football is not the only shock we have seen this afternoon. A little earlier Canada defeated Australia in the semi-final of the women’s rugby sevens. Australia were among the favourites to take the gold medal, the Stade de France were stunned as they were last night when Canada knocked out hosts France.
Canada will now fight for the gold medal against New Zealand in the final – taking place tonight at 6.45 BST – after they won their semi-final against the USA.
In men’s football there has been a big upset in group C with Spain losing 2-1 to Egypt. Spain had launched a comeback with a late goal but it ended up being just a consolation. Both teams have qualified for the knock-out rounds but that is a great result for Egypt. The other match in the group between the Dominican Republic and Uzbekistan has ended 1-1.
Thank you Martin and hello everyone. It’s a scorcher today, not only the weather but the sport on display too. Over the next few hours I’ll take you through all of the headlines from the Games, as well as following the action live.
We have men’s tennis doubles, women’s team gymnastics and men’s basketball among the action. Let’s get stuck in.
That is it from me, Martin Belam, for today. My homework is clearly going to be how to spell Guatemala after getting it wrong on 1,057 occasions earlier.
I am going to be swapping watching the Olympics on television for watching some non-league football in real life, with a trip tonight to watch one of my local teams, West Essex, take on FC Clacton in the Essex Senior League. £8 in for adults and they do a cracking burger.
I will leave you in the capable hands of Sarah Rendell. I will be back here later in the week. Allons-y!
British tennis player Jack Draper has criticised Olympic organisers for making players drink “hot water” after wilting during his second-round loss, PA Media reports.
In an effort to be more environmentally friendly, tennis players are now supplied with refillable bottles, but Draper found himself unable to keep his water cool, and spending the changes of ends standing up at a water fountain.
“It was tough conditions, there’s no doubt about it,” said Draper. “I need to play more in this sort of heat, and obviously, going to America, I’ll get more used to that. It was really hot out there today.
“We were both trying our best to put out some good tennis. Part of it’s physicality but I said to the referee, it’s pretty poor that the players have to drink hot water when we’re playing in those conditions.
“It’s important we have good fridges to keep our water cool. It’s so tough to recover when you’re just not replenishing properly.
“There’s no escape from the heat, even at the change of ends. I haven’t played in much hotter conditions than that. Your body starts to really fight against you.
“We shouldn’t have to fill our water up every change of ends, we need to sit down. It’s not good enough. I just think it’s pretty poor that they put the players through that on court.”
Men’s football: did I speak too soon? Spain have made it 2-1 in the 90th minute against Egypt. Fifa’s super-extended tournament additional time is in play and there are TEN added minutes. Egypt are hanging on to their lead here.
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There is sport happening everywhere, and more than a couple of things I am yet to inform you about. With seven minutes to go Egypt’s men have a 2-0 lead over Spain in the football. Spain are already guaranteed to go through, but this result would see Egypt top the group, and ends any hope the Dominican Republic had of advancing. They are 1-1 with Uzbekistan at the moment.
Kat Petersen emails me with the superb point that Jean Pierre Brol Cardenas of Guatemala has ruined one of her favourite Olympic facts, saying:
I am selfishly disappointed in Brol Cardenas winning a medal in the shooting – Guatemala were one of the few (not sure how many) countries that had more Nobel prize winners than Olympic medallists. I suppose I’ll settle for them now having two of each.
Has a result in these Games ruined one of your favourite obscure Olympic facts? Well don’t email me about it yet, because my shift is about to finish, but let’s pick this thread up when I’m next on …
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Tokyo gold medallist Charlotte Worthington failed to progress to the BMX freestyle final this time around, but has given a heart warming response to that disappointment in an interview, telling the BBC:
My main goal was to be a two-time Olympian, to get here. And after the journey that I’ve had, to perform a run and get to the finish line. The only fight that I was fighting out there was me against me.
So I’m really proud. And very happy with all the people that have helped me get here. I’m proud. I’m feeling a lot of emotions right now. It’s not what you want, but at the same time, I know I’ve won, and I’ve achieved my goal.
At the start of 2023, Worthington has previously said she “talked openly about my struggles with the pressures of being an Olympic champion and took some time out from major competitions.”
In the BBC interview today she continued:
I have no idea what the future holds. This has been a crazy journey and I’ve gone from the top of the world to my own personal rock bottom and I’m in the process of building up. I don’t know if I’ll go to another Olympics. I don’t know where my competitions lie now. But I’m very, very proud to get here and represent this country, and everyone that stands behind me.
She encouraged others to get into BMXing and sport in general, saying:
Oh my God, just do it. This sport has given me everything. I’m so grateful. It’s made me so happy and you know, so sad, but because it comes with both, it will build you as a person. Sport in general is a beautiful thing. And BMX is one of the things that’s made me happiest in my life.
It has built me as a person. It’s made me who I am. It’s totally transformed my life. And yeah, pick up a bike, go to your local skate park, make some friends and put a smile on your face.
Here is some more detail on the basketball defeat for Australia’s men earlier, via Australian Associated Press:
The Boomers lost 93-83 to Canada in a high-quality Olympic basketball battle that leaves Australia needing to fell Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Greece to ensure a quarter-final berth.
Australia played wonderfully in Lille on Tuesday to lead by four points at half-time, before Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, RJ Barrett (24 points, seven rebounds, five assists) and their NBA support cast overwhelmed them to seize control of their Olympics pool of death.
Gilgeous-Alexander was practically unstoppable for the World Cup bronze medallists, scoring 16 points in just 25 minutes on eight-of-10 shooting.
Josh Giddey had won the earlier exchanges (19 points, seven rebounds, six assists) before his former Oklahoma City teammate took control in the second half.
Tokyo bronze medallists Australia, who impressively beat Spain in their Games opener, will play the winless Greece on Friday.
Read more here: Australia come unstuck against Canada in Olympic basketball group of death
Gold for Britain's Nathan Hales in men's trap shooting with Olympic record! 🥇🥇🥇
Men’s trap shooting: in a phenomenal display of shooting Great Britain’s Nathan Hales has taken gold in the men’s trap, scoring 48/50 and setting a new Olympic record.
The current world record-holder beat China’s Qi Ying into second place by four shots.
Sweden’s Rikard Levin-Andersson had an attack of nerves when he was in third place and made a couple of errors, letting in Jean Pierre Brol Cardenas of Guatemala for bronze, his nation’s first medal of the Games and only their second ever summer Olympic medal.
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Men’s trap shooting: Nathan Hales goes into the last five shots with a lead of three. He is also looking set to break the Olympic record.
Men’s trap shooting: Jean Pierre Brol Cardenas of Guatemala takes bronze. Great Britain’s world record holder Nathan Hales now leads by three shots after 40. He is very close to a gold medal here. Only China’s Qi Ying and/or his own nerves can stop him.
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Men’s trap shooting: Nathan Hales is back in front after Qi Ying misses twice! Hales is 33/35, Qi Ying is 31/35.
Sweden’s Rikard Levin-Andersson did have a disaster and Jean Pierre Brol Cardenas of Guatamala has overtaken him and is guaranteed at least a bronze! Their first of the Games!
Men’s trap shooting: Team GB’s Nathan Hales misses a second shot, he is now tied 31/33 with China’s Qi Ying. I don’t want another nervy experience like live blogging Tom Pidcock was yesterday in that incredible cycle race.
Men’s trap shooting: it is the American Derrick Mein who is eliminated next. Four shooters left. Nathan Hales leads by one shot from China’s Qi Ying and Sweden’s Rikard Levin-Andersson.
Jean Pierre Brol Cardenas of Guatamala is in fourth, and will be elimated in five shots time unless one of the others has a nightmare.
Men’s trap shooting: world number two James Willett is the first man to be eliminated, and finishes sixth. Nathan Hales leads with 24/25, and then China’s Qi Ying and Sweden’s Rikard Levin-Andersson have 23/25.
France’s reigning champion Clarisse Agbegnenou and three-times world champion Georgian Tato Grigalashvili safely reached the judo semi-finals, Reuters reports.
Agbegnenou brought joy to the crowd in the quarter-finals of the women’s under 63kg when she beat Laura Fazliu of Kosovo. Grigalashvili will face 22-year-old South Korean Lee Joon-hwan in the men’s under 81kg semi-final.
I honestly think I could stand there shooting all day and wouldn’t hit one of these targets. Nathan Hales here has hit 21 out of 22.
Men’s trap shooting: the thing with this sport is these guys are really very, very good at it, and so it is going to come down to someone missing just once or twice. Australia’s James Willett has already racked up four misses, but the leading pair, China’s Qi Ying and Team GB’s Nathan Hales, have missed just one of their opening 18 shots. Matthew Coward-Holley took a bronze in this for Great Britain in Tokyo.
Men’s trap shooting: at Chateauroux the men’s trap final has started. There are six men on the range, with Great Britain’s Nathan Hales, Australia’s James Willett and Derrick Scott Mein of the USA among those hoping to land a medal.
That gold for China puts them back on top of the medal table, with six golds each for China and Japan. France, Australia and South Korea all have five, the USA three and several countries, including Great Britain and Canada, have two. You can find all the details here.
Gold for China in the table tennis mixed doubles 🥇
Table tennis mixed doubles: North Korea’s Kim Kum Yong and Ri Jong Sik put up a brave fight here, but China continued their virtual stranglehold on table tennis medals in Olympic history with Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha taking gold. They won 11-6 7-11 11-8 11-5 7-11 11-8.
It is the 33rd gold China has won in table tennis since it was introduced in 1988. The only other nations to ever win a gold in the sport are South Korea on three occasions and Japan and Sweden once each.
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Mathieu Lehanneur designed the hot air balloon effect Olympic cauldron that absolutely wowed me at the opening ceremony, and Reuters have a few words with him about the reaction to it. He told the news agency:
I’m so happy about what’s happening, it’s unbelievable. I was here again last night and so you have to imagine that here behind me, every night from 8pm, crowds start to build up and then at 10pm [when the cauldron is lit] there is an extraordinary atmosphere.
Also behind the scenes, Rudi Zygadlo has spoken to the musical director of the Olympics, Victor le Masne. You can read that here …
Table tennis mixed doubles: the North Korean pair needed to take the fifth game to stay in contention, and they did. China lead 3-2 in the final, which is best of seven.
Men’s basketball: not a good day at the office for the Australia team, who will be disappointed with a 93-83 reverse to Canada in Group A. Earlier in the same group Spain defeated Greece 84-77. Australia face Greece in the final group match on Friday. The top two progress in each group, with two third-placed teams also reaching the quarter-finals.
Table tennis mixed doubles: North Korea’s Kim Kum Yong and Ri Jong Sik are facing China’s Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha in the final. At the moment the Chinese duo are two games to one ahead, and leading the fourth 7-5. There is a huge contingent of Chinese fans in the venue, and the atmosphere seems electric every time they score a point.
Here is an extended report, via Associated Press, of Coco Gauff’s exit from the Olympics singles, after defeat to Croatia’s Donna Vekić. Gauff is still entered in the women’s doubles and mixed doubles.
Some great quotes from Italy’s Simona Quadarella here about lining up in the pool alongside the legend that is Katie Ledecky. Reuters reports Quadarella said:
I always do races with Katie without thinking about her and without seeing her. It’s like the lane is empty with no one. Because I think she is unbeatable. So I will check the other girls and I hope for the best.
Women’s BMX freestyle: it is Hannah Roberts of the USA who has finished top of the pile in qualifying here, with a score of 91.45. However Team GB’s defending gold medallist Charlotte Worthington has failed to make the cut and is one of the three riders eliminated. Sun Jiaqi and Deng Yawen of China qualified second and third, with Perris Benegas of the US in fourth. The final is tomorrow afternoon in Paris.
Ewan Murray has been at Golf National in France, and has teed up – see what I did there – this week’s contest:
Rory McIlroy has set his sights on Olympic gold as a means to atone for a decade of hurt in major championships.
McIlroy, who is donning Team Ireland colours at Golf National this week, won the last of his four major championships in 2014. While, like many golfers, McIlroy is clearly unsure about the standing of Olympic medals in this sport he is high on personal motivation. Golf was absent from the Games for 112 years until a return in 2016.
“It would be the achievement, certainly of the year,” McIlroy said when asked where success would rank in his mind. “I think for me, it’s well documented that I haven’t won one of the big four in 10 years. It would probably be one of, if not the biggest in my career for the last 10 years.
Read more here: Olympic gold would be achievement of the year after major pain, claims McIlroy
Egyptian fencer Nada Hafez has revealed she was competing while seven months pregnant. Alexandra Topping has the story here …
Women’s tennis singles: yesterday Team USA published a piece on their website “Coco Gauff is loving life at the Paris Olympic Games”. Not so much today. Donna Vekić is into the quarter-finals after the thirteenth seed beat Gauff 7-6 6-2.
Gauff was involved in a heated exchange with the officials two games from the end of the match over a disputed call.
Amy Wilson-Hardy withdrawn from Team GB rugby sevens squad
Team GB has issued a statement to say that Amy Wilson Hardy has been withdrawn. It said:
The British Olympic Association has confirmed that Amy Wilson Hardy has been withdrawn on medical grounds from the Paris 2024 rugby sevens placement matches and will be replaced by Tokyo 2020 Olympian Abi Burton.
The British Olympic Association has been investigating Hardy over an alleged racist message sent on WhatsApp.
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Men’s tennis singles: Taylor Fritz of the USA has seen off the challenge of Great Britain’s Jack Draper. The number seven seed won 6-7 6-3 6-2.
Table tennis mixed doubles: I must confess I have somewhat neglected the table tennis, but the mixed doubles bronze medal match has just finished in victory for Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yubin of South Korea.
Men’s hockey: there are scenes here as Great Britain have scored two goals in quick succession and brought it back to 2-2. The Netherlands have had a player green carded to add insult to injury. There is 90 seconds left.
Women’s BMX freestyle: Team GB’s Charlotte Worthington has just scored a low-ish 79.2 on her first run, and looked a bit miffed about it. The final score in each heat is an average of the score from two runs.
China’s Sun Jiaqi won the first heat, with the USA’s Perris Benegas and the Czech Republic’s Iveta Miculyčová also progressing.
Men’s hockey: not good news for Team GB. The Netherlands have a 2-0 lead going into the last seven minutes of the final quarter. Thijs van Dam with the second Dutch goal in the 52nd minute.
Kieran Pender has this update for the Guardian from the Olympic pool:
Australia’s defending Olympic champion in the men’s 200m breaststroke, Zac Stubblety-Cook, has surged in the final lap to book the second fastest time in the heats, ahead of tonight’s semi-finals. South Korea’s Cho Sung Jae was fastest, with home favourite Leon Marchand in third. Fellow Australian Joshua Yong went through in 14th.
In the women’s 100m freestyle, dual Australian hopes Shayna Jack and Mollie O’Callaghan comfortably progressed, in fifth and sixth respectively, with Swedish star Sarah Sjostrom fastest. O’Callaghan backed up after her remarkable 200m freestyle gold medal last night.
In the men’s 100m freestyle, Australian Kyle Chalmers qualified for the semi-finals in sixth.
In the women’s 1500m freestyle, American Katie Ledecky was fastest, with Australia’s Moesha Johnson – who is also swimming the marathon 10km open water race later in the Games – through in fifth.
In the heats of the morning, for the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay, Great Britain was fastest through to tonight’s final, followed by the USA, France and Australia.
Baton handover: Martin Belam is back for the foreseeable, so I’ll be leaving you in very capable hands. Thank you for your eyeballs!
Men’s hockey: The Netherlands have just gone one up in the third quarter of their Pool A match against Great Britain. Meanwhile in Pool B, India have doubled their lead over the Irish and are two goals to the good.
Tennis: Donna Vekic (Croatia) has taken the first set off Coco Gauff (USA) in their third round match in the women’s singles, while Jack Draper (Great Britain) is a set to the good in his second round encounter against Taylor Fritz (USA). Sadly for Jack, it looks like he’ll have to win it the hard way; his opponent is 5-2 up in the second and about to restore parity.
Swimming: Having already won gold in the 400m individual medley, French superstar Leon Marchant qualified for the 200m butterfly semi-finals earlier this morning and has just booked his place in the breastroke equivalent.
In other swimming news, Great Britain’s men have just swam out comfortable winners of their heat in the 4x200m freestyle relay ahead of tonight’s final at 9.15pm. “I can’t imagine us not winning that final tonight,” says BBC swimming pundit Adrian Moorhouse.
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Men’s hockey: Elsewhere at the Yves du Manoir Stadium, Great Britain’s men are taking on the Netherlands in Pool A and the match, being played in extreme heat, remains scoreless.
Men’s hockey: Having lost their first two games in Pool B against Belgium and Australia, Ireland currently find themselves a goal down against India inat the end of the first quarter of their latest encounter. India won their opener against New Zealand before drawing with Argentina in their second match.
Sailing: Great Britain’s Sam Sills finished sixth in race two of the men’s iQFOiL to drag himself up to 17th overall in the 24-man field.
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Swimming: It’s job done for Great Britain’s Anna Hopkin, who has qualified for the semi-finals of the women’s 100m freestyle with the 10th fastest time in the heats. She goes through in 53.67 seconds.
Hockey: Great Britain’s game against the Netherlands in the men’s competition is underway at the Yves du Manoir Stadium and it’s currently scoreless. The Dutch won their opening two games against South Africa and France, while Team GB started with a win against Spain but were held 2-2 by South Africa.
Tennis: Great Britain’s Jack Draper is in the second round of the men’s singles on Court Suzanne-Lenglen at Roland Garros. He’s playing Taylor Fritz from the USA and leads 6-5 in the first set. Elsewhere at Roland Garros, Fritz’s compatriot Coco Gauff leads Croatia’s Donna Vekic by the exact same score in the third round of the women’s singles.
Table tennis: China’s reigning women’s table tennis singles gold medallist Chen Meng has won her way into last 16 by beating Sweden’s Linda Bergstrom 4-1.
Corrections and clarifications: “Just to be an absolute pedant, but the photo used in the live blog illustrating the story about Brouillet’s photo of Brazilian surfer Medina is a different angle from a different photographer,” writes Ben Roome. “It should be Jérôme Brouillet/AFP/Getty Images and you’ve used Xinhua/REX/Shutterstock.” Never apologise for always welcome pedantry.
Sailing: After a very long delay, the second round of the Men’s iQFOiL, with all 24 competitors surfing across the water in Marseille. Team GB’s Sam Sills is currently in seventh place.
Judo: Great Britain’s Lucy Renshaw has been knocked out of the women’s -63kg competition by Austria’s Lubjana Piovesana, who used to represent Team GB until nailing her colours to the Austrian mast in 2023. Renshaw exits in the second round of the competition, having gone out in the first round in Tokyo.
“Judo’s such a cruel sport,” a tearful Renshaw tells the BBC. “The last 12 weeks have probably been the best 12 weeks of training I’ve ever done before. I felt like I had more to give. It wasn’t that exhausting because I felt good.”
On fighting somebody she knows well and used to train with: “I think that’s what happens when you fight somebody so regularly and you know them so well. It’s quite a rubbish fight because you know each other so well. She was the better player on the day.”
Le Menu for today at the #Olympics
— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) July 30, 2024
Let @KieranPender guide you through the best of the day's action at #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/Fnu2RNYVJK
If you feel useless today, just remember somebody is working as a lifeguard at the #Olympics pic.twitter.com/Fs5VbCRTry
— Today Years Old (@todayyearsoldig) July 30, 2024
Sailing: Race two of the Men’s iQFOiL (a windsurfing class) in Marseille has been delayed but looks like it is going to start in the next few minutes. Organisers in race management boat are just waiting for the wind to settle and making some last-minute adjustments to the course: moving the start line, among other things … as you do.
There are 24 different nations represented in the men’s competition and Sam Sills goes for Great Britain. After the completion of one race, he sits in 21st place overall.
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I can’t stop looking at this photograph. I mean … wow.
Good day, everyone. Barry Glendenning here to take you through the next couple of hours, with precious little in the way of glamour medal events looming.
We do have a Pool A men’s hockey game between Great Britain and the Netherlands looming in the next hour, while Ireland take on India in Pool B. Throw some tennis, archery, boxing, swimming and volleytball into the mix, and it’s quite the eclectic jamboree.
Imagine that bit of Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me where George Michael says “Ladies and gentlemen, Mr Elton John!”, except it is me saying “Ladies and gentlemen, Mr Barry Glendenning!”. I will see you back here in a couple of hours.
Team GB have announced a squad change in the men’s hockey, with Tom Sorsby coming in for the injured David Goodfield.
Tom Sorsby has been added to our men's hockey squad after David Goodfield sustained an injury.
— Team GB (@TeamGB) July 30, 2024
Sorsby has been brought into the team under the late athlete replacement policy and will be available to play against the Netherlands later today.#Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/r8YCd5qemj
Great Britain, after a win over Spain and a draw with South Africa, face the Netherlands in Pool A at 12.45 local time. The Dutch have won their two games so far.
Earlier in Pool A France and Spain drew, and Germany are currently well in control against South Africa with a 4-1 lead at the start of the fourth quarter.
More here from my colleague Kieran Pender in Paris on that latest news of Covid in the swimming camps:
Australia’s Lani Pallister has withdrawn from the women’s 1500m freestyle after testing positive for Covid, the Australian Olympic Committee announced an hour before her anticipated heat swim on Tuesday.
Pallister won bronze in the long distance event at the 2022 world championships, but opted to withdraw from the Paris 2024 race in the hope of recovering in time for Australia’s 4x200m freestyle relay on Thursday.
The 22-year-old’s withdrawal leaves Moesha Johnson as the only Australian in the 1500m race; Johnson will also swim in the 10 kilometre open water marathon swimming later in the Games.
The AOC’s announcement has sparked fears of a growing Covid risk on the pool deck, after British swim star Adam Peaty tested positive on Monday less than 24 hours after winning silver in the 100m breaststroke.
Pallister is not the only Australian Olympian to go down with Covid in Paris – several members of the women’s water polo team, the Stingers, tested positive on the eve of the Games.
Chef de mission insisted that the Australian team was taking a different approach to Covid than three years ago, when the Tokyo Olympics were held amid the height of the pandemic.
“This is a high-performance environment, so we are being diligent,” Meares said at a press conference last week. “But I need to emphasise we’re treating Covid no differently to other bugs like the flu – this is not Tokyo.”
Read more here: Australian swimming camp hit by Covid as medal hope Lani Pallister tests positive
Men’s water polo: a fairly routine victory for Australia over Serbia in Group B the water polo. It finished 8-3 with Luke Pavillard scoring four of those.
Men’s hockey: it finished France 3-3 Spain, a result that isn’t really much use to the hosts, who have now failed to win in their first three matches.
Equestrian dressage: British Dressage, who run events in the UK, say that the concept of dressage dates back as far as 350BC and Athenian historian and soldier Xenophon. I don’t suppose he had a complicated system where sixty riders were divided into six groups of ten, with the top two qualifying for the Grand Prix final plus the six other best-scoring riders, but there you go. That is what is happening with the horses right now. Just look at that setting …
There is also a team competition qualification happening at the same time, with the top ten teams progressing to the final.
Men’s hockey: I’d be tearing my hair out if I was the French coach. They got back into the lead 3-2 but have let it slip again. France 3-3 Spain with six minutes to go.
Beau Dure has a feature today looking Taylor Knibb, who will – pollution permitting – follow up her appearance in the cycling time trial with the triathlon, joining a select group of athletes to perform in two different sports at the same Games.
The c-word has cropped up again. Reuters reports Australia’s Lani Pallister, a medal hope in the women’s 1,500 metres freestyle, has withdrawn from the event after testing positive for Covid. A team spokesperson said the decision had been made to save her energy for the 4x200 freestyle relay.
Women’s double sculls rowing: Team GB’s Mathilda Hodgkins Byrne and Rebecca Wilde have secured a spot in Thursday’s final after finishing second in their semi-final behind Romania’s Ancuța Bodnar and Simona Radiș. Norway came third but Australian pair Amanda Bateman and Harriet Hudson missed out in fourth place. In the other semi-final it was New Zealand, the Netherlands and France who progressed.
Men’s hockey: the hosts have been without a win so far in the Olympics, and France at one point had a 2-0 lead today, but they’ve let Spain right back into this. It is 2-2 with five minutes of the third quarter remaining.
Here are your medal winners from the 10m air pistol mixed team event. Gold for Serbia, silver for Turkey and bronze for India.
Reuters is carrying a quote from French triathlon federation technical director Benjamin Maze, who with some understatement has told FranceInfo radio “of course there is a little bit of anger and a lot of disappointment” among the athletes about the cancellation of today’s men’s triathlon.
Women’s handball: a convincing win for Germany over Slovenia in the end, to give the Germans their first win at the thrid attempt. The match finished 41-22 in Group A, with seven goals apiece for Xenia Smits and Annika Lott. All the teams in this group are playing today at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, with the next two fixtures being Norway v South Korea this morning, and Sweden v Denmark tonight.
Australia has brought in Ben O’Connor for the men’s road race after Luke Plapp withdrew after his crash in slippery conditions in the individual time trial on Saturday.
Plapp was admitted to hospital and required abdominal surgery after the incident, which ruled him out of the road race this weekend.
“Luke is receiving the best of care in hospital and is being well supported by our medical team,” said Australian Chef de Mission Anna Meares. “We expect he’ll be out of hospital this week and wish him a speedy recovery.”
O’Connor is one of Australia’s leading general classification riders; he placed fourth in the Giro d’Italia in May and is expected to ride the Vuelta a España next month. He will ride in support of Australian leader Michael Matthews, alongside Simon Clarke. “Ben has performed strongly this season and is currently in top form,” said Meares.
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Gold for Serbia in the 10m air pistol mixed team shooting 🥇🥇🥇
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: after a tense finish Damir Mikec and Zorana Arunović have won Serbia’s first medal of these Games, and it is gold.
Despite at one point trailing Turkey 8-2, a combined score of 20.1 in the fifteenth round of shooting gave them a 16-14 triumph. The Serbian pair had finished fourth in this event in Tokyo.
Şevval İlayda Tarhan and Yusuf Dikeç took silver, with Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh winning bronze for India in the earlier bronze medal match against South Korea.
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: Turkey are Serbia are tied 10-10 in this final 👀
Men’s volleyball: Italy have beaten Egypt 25-15 25-16 25-20 in Pool B. The US face Germany in Pool C at 13.00 local time.
Rowing men’s single sculls: it is the quarter-finals in this today. New Zealand’s Thomas Mackintosh is holding the lead in the first one at the moment.
Men’s hockey: hosts France have copped a couple of thumpings so far in this tournament, losing 8-2 to Germany and 4-0 to the Netherlands in their first two games. However they have taken an early lead against Spain this morning in a match that started at 10am local time.
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: the gold medal match has started, featuring Serbia’s Damir Mikec and Zorana Arunović against Turkey’s Şevval İlayda Tarhan and Yusuf Dikeç.
Men’s volleyball: Italy seem on their way to a second win in Pool B, having taken the first two sets against Egypt 25-15 25-16.
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: and the bronze medal🥉 goes to India! They fumbled a couple of chances to score the final two points they needed, giving opponents South Korea some hope of a comeback as they ate into India’s lead, but ultimately Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh won 16-10. Turkey and Serbia are up next for the gold!
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: there has just been a tactical time out in the bronze medal match, but it hasn’t quite revived South Korea’s fortunes yet. India lead 10-6 going into series nine.
Women’s handball: Germany’s women have taken a 16-9 lead against Slovenia into half-time in the handball. Germany desperately need a result here today, having narrowly lost both their opening matches. Four of the six teams in the group progress, and Germany are the only side in Group A yet to notch a win.
Shooting 10m air pistol mixed team: it is very early doors for the first medal of the day. South Korea’s Oh Ye Jin and Lee Wonho are facing India’s Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh in the bronze medal match. They are just doing the formalities at the moment. Turkey will face Serbia in the final for the gold medal directly afterwards.
It is just gone 9am in Paris, and a couple of team sports have just got going. Germany and Slovenia are playing in the women’s handball, while Italy take on Egypt in the men’s volleyball.
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Hello! Good morning from London. It is Martin Belam here very much looking forward to my favourite Olympic sport, the triathlon today *checks earpiece* oh, I hear there is news. Never mind, there is still plenty to look forward to, including medals in shooting, judo, artistic gymnastics, fencing, rugby sevens and swimming. There is a lot to pack in. Allons-y!
It’s time for the baton to be passed once again from Melbourne to London and for Martin Belam to steer you through the the morning’s action. À Mercredi tout le monde.
The early starters in the badminton will soon be joined by competitors in beach volleyball, handball, and shooting, with those events all starting at 9:00 local time.
Then from 9:30 shooting will deliver the day’s first medals. It’s the business end of the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team with India and Korea competing for bronze, followed by Türkiye v Serbia for gold.
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Day four of Paris 2024 is under way (half-an-hour later than scheduled) with Porte de La Chapelle Arena humming to the sound of satisfyingly spanked shuttlecocks. I’m pretty sure today is the last of the group phase in the singles and doubles, while the mixed doubles are already through to the quarter-finals.
It’s going to be a scorching hot day in Paris with temperatures peaking in the mid-30s. However, there’s a chance of overnight showers with scattered thunderstorms on the cards for Wednesday and Thursday. The poor triathlon organisers better have Plans C through to Z handy.
Men’s 100m favourite Noah Lyles has come under fire for (uncontroversially in my opinion) saying he was the fastest man in the world during the opening ceremony. The 27-year-old won the 100m, 200m, and 4 x 100m relay at last year’s world championships and will enter each of those events next week ranked number one in the world. That’s pretty solid ground if you ask me. Besides, I am very much here for the braggadocious sprinters. More of it please, Noah.
Women’s rugby sevens is enjoying its moment in the spotlight, as Jack Snape reports.
The 66,000 who packed the stadium on Sunday set a new attendance record for women’s rugby, beating the previous one of 58,498 at Twickenham for England v France last year. A similar number returned on Monday. The same is expected for Tuesday’s medal matches, the stands full just as they were for Antoine Dupont’s crowning glory in the men’s sevens days earlier. And they were almost as loud on Monday night, bouncing around the ground in northern Paris but unable to will their side over the line in a surprise 19-14 quarter-final loss to Canada.
One of the most emotional moments of the Games so far arrived yesterday in the fencing when Olha Kharlan won bronze for Ukraine. It was the 33-year-old’s fifth Olympic medal (a list topped by gold at Beijing 2008) but none of the previous four carried such weight.
Kharlan shot to international attention at the 2023 World Fencing Championships when she was disqualified for not shaking hands with her Russian opponent, Anna Smirnova. Her ejection had made qualification for Paris by the standard route virtually impossible but she was handed a lifeline following an intervention from the IOC president Thomas Bach, a former fencer.
Nick Ames has been close to the story throughout and reported on Kharlan’s success from the Grand Palais.
This was for Ukraine. It was for the people back home where every victory, of whatever kind, is laden with meaning few outside can understand. It was for those who have lost their lives while fighting to ensure the country’s athletes remain free to compete. It was for Olha Kharlan’s family in Mykolaiv, where her parents spent months living in their basement under continued Russian attack. And it was for the show of principle that almost denied her the chance to experience this at all.
Earlier today I pointed you in the direction of a gallery of the best images from day three including the incredible shot of a levitating Gabriel Medina. Here’s how the shot came together, featuring the photographer Jérôme Brouillet.
The men’s Olympic triathlon was postponed just hours before it was due to start on Tuesday following a 3.30am inspection of the Seine, which found that pollution levels were still too high for athletes to safely swim in.
In a statement, organisers said that the heavy rain over Paris on Friday and Saturday had compelled them to “reschedule the event for health reasons.”
With rain also forecast for later this week, the men’s race has been rescheduled for 10.45am on Wednesday following the conclusion of the women’s race, which is due to start at 8am.
However athletes included Team GB’s Alex Yee and Beth Potter, who are favourites for the men’s and women’s race, face an anxious wait to see if water quality improves.
There is also a risk of thunder and lightning in Wednesday’s forecast, which could throw yet another potential spanner in the works.
“I’m sort of with you on the skating,” emails Jakob Mathiszig-Lee in response to my curmudgeonly post, “but that said I really enjoyed watching the final yesterday, as did my 3 year old.
“I think one of the issues with it is what makes tricks difficult is sometimes extremely difficult to pick up quickly to a casual viewer and a lot of them look extremely similar in real time. That said the commentary team yesterday did a great job of explaining why a trick deserved a high score during the replays and I was completely gripped by the best trick session in the end.”
Thanks Jakob, and I’m pleased you and your three-year-old were absorbed by the action. Ultimately that is the point of the inclusion of events like this, to broaden the appeal of the Games and steer it away from its militaristic Victorian origins. If the occasional innovation doesn’t capture every passing viewer, that’s fine.
I am considerably more excited by the prospect of breaking – as a spectacle. I’m unconvinced how it will play out as sport.
Rhona Rose has emailed in to ask if we can produce a per-capita medal table that takes into account population size. I shall pass that onto the data visualisation geniuses, but a quick squiz would single out Hong Kong as massive overachievers at this early stage, with Kazakhstan, Belgium, Mongolia, and Moldova among the other notable medal-winners.
It’s not been a record breaking few days in the pool but the racing has been spectacular with nail-biting finishes and hyped duels living up to the billing. One such was the women’s 200m freestyle clash between Australian training partners Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O’Callaghan.
Standing atop the podium with a gold medal around her neck, O’Callaghan invited Titmus to join her. The pair stood together, arms around each other, as they sang Advance Australia Fair. Not one but two Australians elevated on the dais – recognition of Titmus’s role in inspiring O’Callaghan to greatness, and of Titmus’s own heroics. Short of the pair touching in a dead-heat and sharing gold, it was perhaps the most fitting way for this gladiatorial battle to end.
Following in the footsteps of their male counterparts, the US women’s basketball team began their Olympic campaign looking like a team with a point to prove. The Americans now have a 56-game Olympic winning streak that dates to the 1992 Barcelona Games. It means 42-year-old Diana Taurasi is on track for a sixth consecutive gold medal.
Watching Tom Pidcock deal with a flat tyre and win the cross-country cycling was much easier to enjoy.
It was a ride of pure, thrilling instinct: a welcome reminder that in the chaos of competitive cross-country biking, sometimes the best plan is no plan at all. And Pidcock, who has won on the snow-flecked peaks of Alpe d’Huez and the dandruff-white roads of Strade Bianche and now the verdant woodland of Paris, is in many ways a cyclist of the romantic imagination, of a time before strategies and specialisation and four‑year plans, when the essence of the sport was simply to get on your bike and thrash the hell out of it.
Specialisation will surely come for Pidcock too in the end. With a second gold safely in the bag, and with his peak years approaching, all the incentives seem to point towards a proper tilt at the Tour with Ineos Grenadiers, the laborious process of chiselling and sanding himself down into a pure mountain machine. But here, amid the tree stumps and the dirt, is where his bold and breathtaking range of skills finds its most vivid and spectacular expression.
I’m going to level with you all, I don’t get skateboarding, especially the street event. Compared to the other youth-focussed modern inclusions (like BMX or climbing) the skills underwhelm me and all that concrete leaves me a little cold. I am happy to be educated, if anyone has a constructive email for me to read.
But apparently yesterday’s men’s final was as good as it gets.
In a heart-pounding 102-minute show of can-you-top-this immediately hailed as the greatest men’s street final ever staged, the trio spent the afternoon swapping medal positions before a packed crowd of about 5,000 spectators that included rapper Snoop Dogg, who had started the day watching Novak Djokovic’s win over Rafael Nadal alongside Billie Jean King at Roland-Garros. The crackling atmosphere was a far cry from the nearly empty Ariake Urban Sports Park where Horigome won his first Olympic gold three years ago.
Scroll to the bottom and enjoy Gabriel Medina levitating.
Yesterday’s success for Team GB has already entered history as magic Monday, but the day also brought news of a positive Covid result for silver medallist Adam Peaty. The absence of panic is a far cry from Tokyo three years ago but the risk of an outbreak remains a concern so early into competition.
Among the highlights of day three was a second round singles match in the men’s tennis. But it was no ordinary clash, featuring the two most successful men in the sport’s history: Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic is bidding for the only trophy missing from his collection with fate conspiring to deliver the Serbian just one bronze medal in a career that has spanned four previous Olympics. Dominik Koepfer (GER) should prove no obstacle in round three, but danger lurks thereafter with Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE), Alexander Zverev (GER), and Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) his next scheduled opponents.
Nadal meanwhile may have played his final singles match of note, and it was fitting that it came on centre court at Roland Garros, against an opponent with whom he has shared the most active rivalry in tennis history. “I have been suffering a lot of injuries the last two years,” Nadal said. “So if I feel that I am not competitive enough to keep going or physically I’m not ready to keep going, I will stop and I will let you know. But I don’t think every day about if I am retiring or not.”
With the triathlon postponed the first action of the day will once again come in badminton (8:30). Beach volleyball, handball, shooting, and volleyball all kick-off at 9:00 then rowing at 9:30, hockey, judo, and table tennis at 10:00.
Japan top the medal table on the morning of day four, thanks in no small part to their domination of skateboarding. The USA lead the medal count, but only three of their 20 visits to the podium have reached the top step.
It’s always good for a Games to see the hosts with some early momentum and everything is going to script so far for France.
The flags of 36 NOCs have now been raised in Paris, including a brace of golds for Hong Kong, a first podium finish in the pool for Ireland since Michelle Smith at Atlanta 96, and Ukraine’s first medal of the Paris Games, a bronze to fencer Olga Kharlan.
Men's triathlon postponed due to pollution fears
Disappointing news to start day four in Paris with World Triathlon announcing the postponement of the men’s event due to the water quality of the river Seine. The race has been rescheduled to tomorrow, after the women’s event. That still doesn’t leave much time for the water quality to improve, so further disruption is not out of the question.
— World Triathlon (@worldtriathlon) July 30, 2024
Sean Ingle has been covering the story for a number of days and filed this report yesterday after the cancellation of open water practice.
Swimming in the Seine has been banned for over a century. But since 2015, organisers have spent around £1bn to ensure a cleaner river for the Games – and to allow Parisians to swim in it afterwards.
Renovations have included the construction of a giant basin to capture excess rainwater and stop too much sewage from flowing into the river – as well as renovating infrastructure and upgrading wastewater treatment plants. The hope now is that the forecast hot weather will be enough to drop E coli levels low enough to race.
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Preamble – Day Four Schedule
Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of the fourth official day of competition of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
Day three was when Great Britain came to life at these Games with Tom Pidcock and the equestrian team securing gold medals, along with silvers in the diving, canoe slalom, and men’s 200m freestyle, as well as bronze in the individual jumping. There was also more joy for the hosts with France celebrating a clutch of silver medals to go with golds in fencing and canoe slalom.
It was a night of gripping finals in the pool, more skateboarding joy for Japan, and the awarding of one of the most emotional medals of the 2024 Olympics: bronze to Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan.
So what can we look forward to today?
Medal Events
🥇 Triathlon – men’s individual (from 8:00)🥇 Shooting – 10m air pistol mixed team (from 9:30)
🥇 Table Tennis – mixed doubles (from 14:30)
🥇 Shooting – men’s trap (from 15:30)
🥇 Judo – men’s 81kg / women’s 63kg (from 16:00)
🥇 Gymnastics - women’s team (18:15)
🥇 Fencing - women’s épée team (19:30)
🥇 Rugby Sevens - women’s (19:45)
🥇 Swimming - women’s 100m backstroke / men’s 800m freestyle & 4 x 200m freestyle relay (20:56)
🥇 Surfing - men’s & women’s (03:34 Wednesday)
*(All times listed are Paris local)
Simon Burnton’s day-by-day guide
Swimming: women’s 100m backstroke
Kaylee McKeown, Australia’s backstroke queen, is going for six golds in Paris – twice the number she won in Tokyo – and today could bring her first, with the 100m final in the evening session. McKeown broke her own world record last October and goes in as overwhelming favourite; Thursday, Friday and Saturday’s 200m backstroke and 200m individual medley double will be a much harder test.
Surfing: men’s and women’s gold medal matches
Olympic organisers chose to hold the surfing competition in Teahupo’o – approximate translation “wall of skulls”, though it’s been nicknamed The End of the Road – in Tahiti, with athletes staying in a cruise ship moored offshore after locals objected to plans to build housing for them (they could not stop the construction of a judging tower in the reef). The attraction is what surfer.com described as “without a doubt one of the heaviest, scariest, most dangerous left-hand reef break waves in the entire world”.
Other unmissable moments will include Simone Biles competing in the gymnastics team final (18:15) and a blockbuster afternoon on Court Suzanne Lenglen where Rafael Nadal is on third in the men’s doubles, followed by Andy Murray, in what could be the retiring great’s final competitive appearance.
I’m sure I’ve failed to include something notable to you in this short rundown, so feel free to let me know what’s on your agenda by emailing: jonathan.howcroft.casual@theguardian.com or, if you’re still rummaging around in the post-Twitter dumpster fire, find me on X @jphowcroft.
I’ll be around for the first few hours of the blog here in Australia, after which I’m handing over to Martin Belam in the UK.
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