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Olympics Day 8 briefing: 'King Leon' stays golden, U.S. runner earns historic medal and more
As we enter the second weekend of the Paris Games, here's the latest from Friday's Olympic action.
In the pool, France's Leon Marchand made more history on Friday, winning the men's 200 individual medley and becoming the fourth swimmer ever to win four or more golds at a single Olympics. Australia's Emma McKeown earned gold in the women's 200 backstroke, finishing ahead of Team USA's Regan Smith, who won her third silver of the Games. American Caleb Dressel had a brutal finish to his individual events, though, placing sixth in the men's 50 freestyle and missing Saturday's 100 butterfly final altogether. Dressel missed the podium by .05 seconds in the freestyle and was visibly upset after his butterfly semifinal.
Team France's history-making Friday continued with a podium sweep in men's BMX Cycling, while in Judo, Teddy Riner became the most decorated Olympic judoka ever winning gold in the 100+kg final.
Elsewhere, Team USA equestrian won a third straight Olympic silver medal in the team jumping event and American archers Brady Ellison and Casey Kaufhold took home bronze in the mixed team event.
While things are winding down in the pool, it's starting to get busy in track and field. American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson advanced easily in her 100m dash prelims Friday morning. She'll face tough competition in Saturday's semifinal as she looks to qualify for the final, which will take place 90 minutes later.
Medal Count
Here's the medal table as we enter the second weekend of action here at #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/rzV50TInl9
— Austen Alvarez-Bundy (@AustenBundyDC) August 2, 2024
Three big things about Team USA
1. Grant Fisher wins America's first 10k race medal since 2012
Entering the home stretch in fifth place, Grant Fisher took off sprinting and held on for bronze in the men's 10,000m race. It's Team USA's second medal in the event in 56 years, the first since Galen Rupp's silver in 2012. Fisher's finish was incredible as earlier in the race he rolled his ankle and nearly fell, which would've likely eliminated him from medal contention altogether. He almost won silver but missed out by .02 seconds when Ethiopia's Berihu Aregawi made a last-second surge at the finish line.
Grant Fisher nearly fell in the 10,000m final and STILL won a medal! #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/sDJkpJgpsP
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 2, 2024
2. American relay smashes world record
Team USA's mixed 4x400m relay, made up of runners Bryce Deadmon, Shamier Little, Vernon Norwood and Kaylyn Brown, destroyed the event's world record during Friday morning's prelims. With a time of 3:07.41 the relay shaved over a second off the original record of 3:08.80. Team USA will try to carry over that momentum into Saturday's final.
3. Men's soccer eliminated in quarterfinal
Team USA men's soccer fell to Morocco 4-0 Friday morning, with the loss eliminating them from the competition. Two penalties against Nathan Harriel were too much to overcome as the Americans couldn't keep up with the Moroccan intensity throughout the match. The U.S. still has yet to win its first Olympic medal in men's soccer. The women will play Saturday against Japan in their quarterfinal match.
You won't believe this
Team USA's Veronica Fraley competed in the discus throw event Friday but it was her viral tweet and what happened next that drew the attention of fans. Fraley, 24, is the reigning NCAA discus champ from Vanderbilt University but revealed that she could not afford rent, lamenting that her school only sent a partial payment "while they pay football players (who haven’t won anything) enough to buy new cars and houses.” That tweet drew the attention of Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian who, with the enlisted help of Team USA superfan Flavor Flav, pledged to send funds to assist Fraley.
C'mon now! I'll split it with @flavorfav
— Alexis Ohanian (@alexisohanian) August 1, 2024
More must-reads:
- Olympics loss takes a serious toll on Polish tennis star Iga Swiatek
- Hall of Famer's son shoots USA to first 3x3 victory
- The 'Summer Olympics all-time medal leader' quiz
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TODAY'S BEST
Cubs catcher lost to horrific-looking injury on same day he returns from IL
After working to return to the Chicago Cubs' lineup following an oblique injury, Miguel Amaya suffered a gruesome-looking injury in his first game back with the Cubs on Wednesday night. Running to first base, Amaya just beat out an infield single on a slow dribbler to shortstop when his left foot landed forcefully on the base, causing his leg to buckle and sending Amaya flying down the first base line. Following the injury, Amaya was carted off the field in Toronto with a towel over his face. The emotions shown by Amaya as he was carted off indicated he knew already he would miss more time in a season that has been marred by injuries. After the game, Cubs manager Craig Counsell confirmed Amaya would be going back on the injured list with what was diagnosed as a left ankle sprain. X-rays, however, were negative. The 26-year-old Amaya had just told reporters after being activated from the 60-day injured list that he was thankful he was healthy. Just three at-bats later, Amaya was once again injured. Amaya's three at-bats against the Blue Jays on Wednesday represented his first game action since May 24, when he recorded just two at-bats against the Cincinnati Reds before leaving the game with an oblique injury. In just 96 at-bats this season, Amaya is slashing .281/.314/.500 with four home runs and 25 RBI. Amaya's injury is another blow for the Cubs, who have seen their lead in the National League Central evaporate as the Milwaukee Brewers have now won 12 consecutive games and are 20-4 since the All-Star break. As has been the case in Amaya's absence, Carson Kelly and Reese McGuire will continue to be the dominant presences behind the plate for the Cubs. Joining with Amaya, the duo has helped the Cubs record a 2.8 Wins Above Average (WAA) at catcher, the highest mark of any MLB team. After Amaya's injury, the Cubs would go on to post a 4-1 win over the Blue Jays.
NASCAR makes decision on victory celebrations after Connor Zilisch fall
One of NASCAR's brightest young stars in Connor Zilisch could miss time after falling in Victory Lane following his victory in the Aug. 9 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen. Zilisch slipped on the door of his No. 88 Chevrolet before suffering a hard fall in Victory Lane and breaking his collarbone. He underwent successful surgery on Tuesday, with a timetable for his return yet to be announced. Even in light of the viral incident, NASCAR will not restrict drivers from celebrating in a certain way moving forward, per NASCAR's Mike Forde. Drivers have long climbed on the roof or door of their vehicles on the frontstretch and in Victory Lane to celebrate victories, but accidents stemming from that action are rare. After winning the Cup Series race at Watkins Glen on Aug. 10, Shane van Gisbergen — who will likely be Zilisch's Cup Series teammate at Trackhouse Racing in 2026 — carefully climbed out of his No. 88 Chevrolet — something he does regularly, not just in response to Zilisch's fall. Zilisch did not race in the Cup Series race at Watkins Glen due to his injury. The Xfinity Series will return on Aug. 22 at Daytona International Speedway, with Zilisch leading the regular-season standings by seven points.
Browns' Shedeur Sanders could be losing valuable opportunity after injury update
Just when it seemed everything was going right for Shedeur Sanders, the Cleveland Browns' rookie quarterback caught an unlucky break on Wednesday. The 23-year-old QB was sidelined during Wednesday's joint practice with the Philadelphia Eagles after suffering an oblique injury. Per Kelsey Russo of the team website, the 2025 fifth-round pick won't practice Thursday and is considered day-to-day. He is deemed unlikely to play in Saturday's preseason game against Philadelphia, scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on NFL Network. Before Wednesday's practice, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed rookie QB Dillon Gabriel will start against Philadelphia as long as he's healthy enough to play. The 2025 third-rounder missed Cleveland's preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers because of a hamstring issue. However, Stefanski previously said Sanders would get more reps this week after a solid preseason debut. The former Colorado Buffaloes star received the start in the 30-10 win over Carolina, going 14-of-23 passing for 138 yards and two touchdown passes. Not playing against Philadelphia could disrupt Sanders' momentum. More importantly, it may eliminate another opportunity for him to overtake Gabriel in Cleveland's four-way QB competition. Sanders is listed as the Browns QB4 behind Gabriel, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco on the team's unofficial depth chart. Despite questions about Gabriel's size (5-foot-11, 205 pounds), the coaching staff seems to favor him over Sanders. Earlier this offseason, Gabriel's processing speed reportedly impressed Browns coaches, giving him an edge over Sanders. The former Oregon Ducks star also received reps with the first-team offense during OTAs and mandatory minicamp, while his fellow rookie didn't. If Gabriel plays well against the Eagles, that would continue to affirm the coaching staff's confidence in the 24-year-old QB. Neither Sanders nor Gabriel is expected to be the Week 1 starter for the Browns. It's likely going to be Flacco, who helped Cleveland make the playoffs in 2023 when he went 4-1 during a late-season stretch. Still, another solid preseason showing could help Sanders position himself to replace 40-year-old Flacco in the future. With the setback, it may take more time to climb the depth chart.
Giants force Jets' Justin Fields into familiar problem at joint practice
New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields was a little more accurate on Wednesday than he was in his "alarming" performance during joint practice with the New York Giants on Tuesday. Still, the fifth-year quarterback had a familiar issue pop up. Per Dan Duggan and Charlotte Carroll of The Athletic, Fields took several sacks against a Giants defense that brought the house on a shaky Jets offensive line. Via The Athletic: "On the other field, the Giants defensive front carried over its domination from Tuesday, giving Jets quarterback Justin Fields and his offensive line plenty of problems. Camp stats are subjective, especially when it comes to sacks, but the Giants appeared to get to Fields for four sacks. "Similar to Tuesday, there were moments when it was hard to tell exactly who was causing problems as the Giants sent multiple bodies in the backfield. Fields, who went 7-of-11 on the day, had a few overthrows on plays that likely were sacks." Fields did have a couple of long runs on a Giants defense that struggled against the rush in 2024. While Fields has a unique ability to add to the running game, the Jets need the 2021 first-round pick to push the ball down the field in the passing game. Fields has always had a problem with being indecisive in the pocket, leading to his taking too many sacks since entering the league. He led the league with 55 sacks in 2022 and has taken 151 in his four-year career. The Ohio State product took 16 sacks during his six starts with the Pittsburgh Steelers last season. In camp, Fields doesn't have to worry about taking body blows from sacks that lead to injuries. That will happen in the regular season if he plays how he practiced on Wednesday.
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