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Fencing: It’s now 42-36, and the wind is in German sails. Hungary will win bronze if they get three more points, but Max Hartung is catching up fast!
Fencing: It’s the men’s team sabre bronze final, and Hungary lead Germany 40-26 with Aron Szilagyi and Max Hartung, the final pair, now on the piste. “It’ll be the greatest comeback of any Olympics and any sport,” says the Eurosport commentator of Germany’s chances.
Cycling: Here’s a report on the women’s time trial, the second gold medal at these Games that Annemiek van Vleuten thought she’d won, and the first she actually did win.
Van Vleuten threw her arms above her head, hugged a Dutch team official and burst into tears in almost the same spot at the Fuji International Speedway circuit where she had beamed to the cameras after mistakenly believing she had won Sunday’s chaotic road race. “I’m number one, right?” she joked.
Related: Van Vleuten quells Olympic road race pain with gold in women’s time trial
Tennis: Earlier today Spain’s Paula Badosa, the world No29, abandoned her quarter-final against Naomi Osaka’s conqueror, Marketa Vondrousova, because of heatstroke. She has since pulled out of the mixed doubles. A number of players, including Novak Djokovic, have complained about being forced to play in the middle of the day in high heat and humidity.
Rowing: Barney Ronay was at the Sea Forest Waterway today to see Britain win one silver medal (and finish fourth three times) in six events. Here’s his piece:
Swerving off course, veering out of its lane at the last. Sport loves a metaphor. As Britain’s Olympic rowers reeled off a series of wholehearted but ultimately disappointing finishes at the Tokyo 2020 waterfront it was hard to avoid the sense the men’s coxless four had dished up its own slightly hammy, if unavoidably persuasive image in its final race.
By the end of Wednesday’s programme one thing did seem uncomfortably clear. The choice to allow Jürgen Gröbler to leave a year before these Games, a decision made by men who can only guess vaguely at Grobler’s depth of fine-point expertise, looks as rash and as damaging now as it did at the time.
Related: GB rowers swerve off course as era of Olympic dominance sinks without trace | Barney Ronay
Rugby sevens: Waisea Nacuqu converts a penalty with the last kick of the competition, and the tears are flowing again for Fiji, Olympic champions again and by the emphatic scoreline of 27-12! It’s only Fiji’s second medal in all history, and they’ve both been rugby sevens golds.
Rugby sevens: Asaeli Tuivuaka touches down, and Fiji lead 24-12 with just 90 seconds to play!
Rugby sevens: Fiji lead 19-12 at half-time. Can the 2016 gold-medallists do it again?
Dressage: The dancing horses are back! It’s the individual final, and four of the 18 competitors have, um, already horsedanced. The big fireworks are expected towards the end of the competition, with the last three to go including Isabell Werth and Dorothee Schneider of Germany, with Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin, hoping to become Britain’s all-time most-decorated female Olympian, sandwiched between them.
Portugal’s Rodrigo Torres has just finished his round, and he is absolutely jubilant. After much air-punching he’s still hugging teammates and support staff as I type. Very DeCoubertinian of him – it’s the taking part that is counting – as with 78.943% he’s third of the four horsepeople to have horsedanced so far. There’s an interview with him in Horse & Hound here, if you’re interested.
Rugby sevens: There were a lot of tears running down Fijian cheeks before the gold medal match got under way, but they are controlling their emotions superbly so far, and have just gone 12-0 up against New Zealand.
Cycling: Rohan Dennis’s bronze in the men’s time trial adds to the silver he won on the track in 2012. The world time trial champion in 2019 and 2020 finished superbly: he was fifth fastest at the final intermediate split, more than five seconds behind Filippo Ganna and nearly 4sec behind Stefan Kueng, but timed his push for the line superbly to end up just 0.4sec ahead of Kueng and nearly 2sec faster than Ganna.
Rugby sevens: It’s bronze for Argentina! The British players slump to the turf after Ignacio Mendy scores the winning points and Argentina hold on!
Rugby sevens: The medal matches are ongoing, with Britain playing Argentina for bronze as I type. After conceding an early try Argentina led 12-5 at half-time, but have now been pegged back at 12-12.
Tennis: Earlier today Daniil Medvedev was so enraged by a journalist’s question that he demanded the scribe be thrown out of the Olympic Games. Tumaini Carayol has the story:
Related: Daniil Medvedev asks for journalist be removed over ‘cheaters’ question
Swimming: An interesting tale this, of how Kristof Milak’s attempt to break the world 200m butterfly record was destroyed, 10 minutes before it begun, by a ripped swimming costume. He found another swimsuit and still won the gold medal, but his record bid was over.
They split 10 minutes before I entered the pool and in that moment I knew the world record was gone. I lost my focus and knew I couldn’t do it.
It was a problem for me. I have a routine, a rhythm, a focus. This broke my focus and that problem impacted my time. I wasn’t swimming for the medal. I was swimming for the time. I said earlier I wanted a personal best. And my personal best is a world record.
Cycling: These times are just astonishing. Here are the top five finishers in the time trial. Four are separated by about 4sec. The other is more than a minute ahead of them.
Cycling: Just scrolling through the splits, Roglic was never out of the top two, but after 15km he led by 0.04sec and after 22.1km by 8.39sec. At that stage it was still close. But then by 31.8km he was 30.94sec ahead of the second fastest rider, Rohan Dennis, by 37.1km he was 42.34sec ahead of Tom Dumoulin, and by the finish he led by 1min 1.39sec. In short, what an astonishing second lap from the Slovenian, 22km in which he absolutely destroyed the field.
Cycling: Nobody’s splits are remotely close to Roglic’s, and though Wout van Aert and Filippo Ganna are among the riders still on the road, nobody is going to catch him.
Cycing: Tom Dumoulin finishes his time trial, and is the fastest over the course so far by the massive margin of 1min 13sec. But then Primoz Roglic comes in next, another minute ahead! Can anyone better that?
Cycling: Roglic and Asgreen have both caught Joao Almeida. The Portuguese rider started three minutes of Roglic, and is now trailing him. The three of them are currently cycling together, which you don’t often see in individual time trials.
Cycling: Having started 90sec before the Australian, Geraint Thomas has now been caught by Rohan Dennis. Meanwhile Primoz Roglic caught and overtook Kasper Asgreen, but the Dane has gone back ahead again, and established quite a gap.
Cycling: Roglic, Dumoulin, Ganna, Dennis and Van Aert are the top five after the first lap of the time trial, within around 10sec of each other. There’s another five seconds before the sixth-fastest rider over the first 22.1km, Stefan Kueng of Switzerland, but then a gap of around 18sec before the seventh-fastest, France’s Remi Cavagna. In short, one of those six riders will surely win gold.
Cycling: Primoz Roglic has bettered Tom Dumoulin’s time over the first lap by a shade over 8sec, with only one rider, Filippo Ganna, yet to reach that point. Geraint Thomas was nearly a minute slower, and does not look likely to win a medal today.
Skateboarding: An Olympic skateboarder who was put in quarantine after testing positive for Covid called the conditions at the hotel “inhuman” on Wednesday.
Candy Jacobs has been in isolation for eight days and missed the street event in skateboarding’s debut as an Olympic sport. She said she had to force officials to allow her a supervised short break for some fresh air away from her room, where the window doesn’t open.
Cycling: Tom Dumoulin finishes the first of two laps, and he’s the fastest to that point by a margin of over 40sec!
Cycling: Every rider has now passed the first split, 9.7km into the course, and Filippo Ganna is fastest. Primoz Roglic is quickest to the second split, at 15km. Already 25 riders have finished, but the gold medallist is still on the road.
Swimming: Tom Dart was at the Aquatic Centre to see Katie Ledecky take gold in the women’s 1500m freestyle:
Walking to the warm-down pool after finishing fifth (fifth!) in the 200m, Ledecky bumped into her coach, Greg Meehan, as he descended from the stands. “We chatted a little bit,” the 24-year-old said. Get mad if you think the frustration can fuel you, he suggested. Or put it out of your mind: forget it happened and treat the 1500 like it’s your only race of the morning.
Ledecky chose the more zen approach and flooded her mind with happy family memories, especially of her grandparents. “I just really love them all and it makes me really happy to think about them,” she said.
Related: Katie Ledecky finally strikes Tokyo gold in first Olympic women’s 1500m free
Cycling: Tom Dumoulin has just posted the fastest time at the first split, by a hefty margin. Still on the first lap, he’s more than 30sec ahead of Rigoberto Uran’s time. The main favourites are still on the road, though, including the world champion and final starter, Filippo Ganna.
Geraint Thomas has just started his run in the men’s time trial, with only two more riders yet to go. The leader in the clubhouse is now Rigoberto Uran, who has just ousted Remco Evenepoel by the margin of 2.58sec. Alberto Bettiol, the Italian currently in bronze medal position, is nearly 17sec further back.
Hello world! I bring news from the diving boards, where Germany have pilfered a bronze medal with the last dive of the event, dumping the Mexicans into fourth place. It’s Patrick Hausding’s third Olympic medal, after silver in the synchronised 10m diving at Beijing in 2008 and bronze in the 3m in Rio, in the 32-year-old’s fourth Olympics.
I’m going to hand you over to Simon Burnton now, whose spirit fingers are going to lead you through the coming hours of action in Tokyo. Until tomorrow.
Briefly back to the time trial, where Canada’s Hugo Houle was on top and the other riders had’t really put him under pressure. But Belgian star Remco Evenepoel is starting to surpass rivals now and has just taken the lead. Porte still some way back in the second wave.
Here is USA Gymnastics’ full statement.
After further medical evaluation, Simone Biles has withdrawn from the final individual all-around competition. We wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many. pic.twitter.com/6ILdtSQF7o
Related: Andy Murray’s Olympics at an end after GB doubles defeat to Croatian pair
Biles had been attempting to become the oldest woman in more than five decades to win the Olympic all-around title and the first repeat champion since Vera Caslavska did it for the former Czechoslovakia in 1968.
This news just in.
USA Gymnastics said in a statement on Wednesday that the 24-year-old is opting to not compete. The decision comes a day after Biles removed herself from the team final following one rotation because she felt she wasn’t mentally ready.
The US v Iran basketball game continued to blow out, finishing 120-66. It leaves the Americans top of Group A but France and the Czech Republic have a game in hand.
Porte is not in a good position. At the 9.7km checkpoint he is 40 seconds adrift. All is not lost but will be tough to recover from here. We are still waiting for some of the top names to start.
US gymnastics star Simone Biles has received an outpouring of support following her shock withdrawal from the team final citing mental health concerns. That includes from Michael Phelps.
“It broke my heart,” Phelps told NBC. “But also, if you look at it, mental health over the last 18 months, is something that people are talking about.
Andy Murray and Joe Salisbury are out of the Olympic doubles after losing 10-7 in the third to Marin Cilic and Ivan Dodig in the quarterfinal.
They led 6-4 4-2. Cilic/Dodig are a great Davis Cup team but a tough, tough loss one round away from contending for medals.
Have just come across this bizarre tweet. Over the weekend, Hou Zhihui won gold in the 49kg weightlifting event and Reuters published a report along with a photo that appears simply to encapsulate the 24-year-old’s incredible strength. China’s Sri Lankan embassy clearly do not agree.
Among all the photos of the game, @Reuters has chosen this one, which only shows how ugly they are.
Don’t put politics and ideologies above sports, and call yourself an unbiased media organization. Shameless.
Respect the spirit of #Olympics. https://t.co/FugQm9obGr
Porte has started his time trial and is on the first little climb.
The US men’s basketball team have scored exactly twice the number of points as Group A opponents Iran. Midway through the third quarter the score sits at 82-41.
A commenter has pointed out that if the “s” is removed from “Richards” then the British men’s gold medal-winning 4x200m freestyle team are made entirely of first names.
Tom Dean, Duncan Scott, James Guy, Matthew Richards.
Shock turn in the tennis, with Barty and Sanders crashing out of their women’s doubles quarter-final. The Australians won the first set but the Czech pair took the second and then the third-set tie-break. The end score is 3-6, 6-4, (10-7).
Apart from those two Aussies mentioned, there are a lot of big guns in the time trial. Think Filippo Ganna (Italy), Remco Evenepoel (Belgium), Wout van Aert (Belgium) and Primož Roglič (Slovenia). All are out to win the gold that went to Switzerland’s Fabian Cancellara won in Rio.
For Team GB it’s all about Geraint Thomas. A two-time Olympic Games champion on the track some years back, the 2018 Tour de France winner had to abandon the road race a few days ago because of a crash and has since switched his focus to the time trial. Also competing for Great Britain is Tao Geoghegan Hart.
In the cycling, the men’s individual time trial has started. The difficulty of the Fuji Speedway course cannot be overstated. The women, in their event earlier, completed one lap of the 22.1km course, which includes an elevation gain of 423m. The men complete that course twice, meaning double the climb.
Australia are represented by Rohan Dennis and Richie Porte. The former actually pulled out of last weekend’s road race to concentrate on this event, and he is a very decent shot at a medal. Neither have started yet.
Ash Barty and women’s doubles partner Storm Sanders have one the first set of their quarter-final against Czech pair Barbora Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková. The score sits at 6-3, 4-4 to the Australians, who have just held serve.
Grace Brown has spoken about her fourth-placed finish in the women’s time trial. The 20-year-old missed out on bronze by seven seconds.
“I mean, you come across the line knowing there’s still really fast riders coming in behind you. It’s seated like that so I was fifth favourite coming into the race and, yeah, being on the hot seat pretty exciting but you know there is a chance you’ll be kicked off so you’re watching each ride coming to across the line, doing the maths.
Some more reader emails.
Heather: “I think that’s one of the wonders of the Olympics – any sport can draw us in. All the different athletes are performing at such a remarkable level, just a few minutes’ watch is enough to intrigue me.
Fox has just completed her first run in 109.96 and it is good enough for second, 2.45 seconds slower than the fastest time, which belongs to Great Britain’s Mallory Franklin (109.96).
“Hi Emma.” Hi Todd!
“I’m in South Korea and am getting more table tennis and archery rather than swimming and rowing because countries show what they they might have a better chance in. But really, watching table tennis is a lot of fun. The speed is unreal and the skill of the players shine through as the matches go on. Still, I am happy to read the blog because otherwise I wouldn’t know what was happening in the rowing and swimming.”
Jess Fox missed out on gold in the K1 but the Australian has another crack at it in the C1. For the uninitiated, the canoe discipline involves athletes using single-bladed paddles and kneeling inside a “closed cockpit”. The heats are up and running and it won’t be long until Fox makes her run.
I distinctly remember watching the men’s 3,000m steeplechase at London 2012 and have just been on a YouTube hunt to find it, but the IOC has blocked me from embedding it. Here’s a cheeky link.
An email from Murray Henman.
“Apart from the standards [athletics, swimming], I think my tastes change at each Olympics. A few Olympics ago I really got into the handball and the hockey. At the moment, the women’s football, cycling, and the steeplechase, because it’s my daughter’s event [not at an Olympic level].”
In that same race, Australian Grace Brown ceded third spot right at the end, and 20-year-old debutant Sarah Gigante finished in 11th.
Annemiek van Vleuten has destroyed an experienced field to win gold in the women’s time trial, days after the Dutch cyclist was involved in a mix-up that ruined any chance she might have had of winning gold in the road race.
Days after confusion reigned in the peloton, leaving van Vleuten momentarily convinced that she had won the road event, her emphatic time trial victory at Fuji International Speedway was never in serious doubt.
Call for feedback. What sports suck you in during the Olympics? I’m a sucker for athletics, which doesn’t get going for a few days yet. I also have a penchant for indoor volleyball which, I believe, is far more fun to watch than the beach variety. Any niche sports you’d like me to dip into? Do we want some table tennis play by play? Does anyone have a thing for judo, weightlifting or boxing? Talk to me.
In a post-race press conference, Ariarne Titmus admitted to “a little bit” of surprise that Katie Ledecky was not breathing down her neck at the climax of the 200m freestyle.
“I always think that Katie’s going to be there,” Titmus said. “She was definitely there for the first part of the race, then I guess she wasn’t at the end.”
It is currently around 31°C with 72% humidity and, despite spending their seasons chasing the sun around the world, tennis players here at the Ariake Tennis Park are struggling.
Shortly before he was pushed into a third set by Fabio Fognini, Daniil Medvedev was asked by the umpire if he was OK. “I can finish the match, but I can die,” he said. “If I die, who will take responsibility?”
So I’ve never heard Matty Johns get a shout-out at an Olympics before, but there is a first for everything I suppose.
“It’s better than LEGO”
Thomas Neill was rapt to pick up a Bronze Medal in his first Olympic games as part of the Men’s 4x200m Freestyle team #Tokyo2020 | #7Olympics | #Swimming pic.twitter.com/1CuD1Ibslb
Team GB had that in the bag from the halfway point and won by 3.23 seconds. Scott, who swam his team’s final leg, recorded the fastest split of the field with 1:43.45.
Shout out too to Thomas Neill, the 19-year-old who swam Australia’s final leg in 1:44.74 – the fastest time of his team. Huge pressure on a teenager at his first Games and he did his quickest time yet.
1 Great Britain – 6:58.58
2 Russia – 7:01.81
3 Australia – 7:01.84
Kieran Smith has got the USA off to an emphatic start in lane two as Germany surge in front and Italy sit in third.
Right, the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay is a go. The last event of the session. Alexander Graham, Kyle Chalmers, Zac Incerti and Thomas Neill are up for Australia in lane five but it’s Team GB in pole position in lane four led by Tom Dean and Duncan Scott, who went 1-2 in the individual 200m free, and James Guy and Matthew Richards.
A quick catch-up on the men’s 200m breaststroke semi-finals, and Australian Zac Stubblety-Cook qualified fastest for the final in 2:07.35. Briton James Wilby also had a very strong swim with 2:07.91. In the other semi, Dutchman Arno Kamminga finished first in 2:07.99 and American Nic Fink placed second in 2:08.00. They were the four fastest times across the board. The final is scheduled for Thursday morning local time.
Ledecky touched the wall in 15:37.34 – four full seconds ahead of Sullivan. They hug, and the relief is palpable. Ledecky isn’t used to not winning, and she finally has the individual gold at the third time of asking. Melverton and Gough finished in sixth and eighth.
The American wins the first Olympics 1,500m free gold. It’s her sixth Olympic gold medal at her third Olympic Games. Compatriot Erica Sullivan came from nowhere in lane three to surge into the silver medal position, and she actually made up some ground on Ledecky. A one-two from the US, and Germany’s Kohler has finished third.
Ledecky has opened up a gap of about four body lengths as she approaches the 1,000m mark. The American is two-thirds through, with Kohler in second
New Zealand will meet Fiji in the men’s rugby sevens final in about six hours, after coming from behind to defeat Argentina 26-14 in their semi-final. As mentioned a little earlier, the Kiwis saw off Great Britain 29-7 in the other semi, meaning Team GB will play Argentina for the bronze medal.
Wang executes a strong turn that keeps her in chase. Ledecky is cruising. She’s clearly not swimming all out, conserving energy. It’s a long, taxing race this one. Melverton and Gough and seventh and eighth respectively.
China’s Wang Jianjiahe in lane five is swimming mighty close to the her right rope. Not sure if that’s intentional or not. Ledecky, after the disappointment of an hour ago, is basically racing herself. She’s a body length and a half ahead of Wang, with Italy’s Simona Quadarella and Germany’s Sarah Kohler fighting it out for third. Ledecky, of course, holds the world record.
The women’s 1,500m freestyle is about to begin, and it continues Katie Ledecky’s punishing schedule at these Games. She’s just swum the women’s 200m freestyle and dives off the blocks in front in line four in the middle-distance discipline. Australians Maddy Gough and Kiah Melverton are in lanes one and eight respectively.
1 Yui Ohashi (JPN)
2 Alex Walsh (USA)
3 Kate Douglass (USA)
That was a superb swim from Ohashi, and the local star goes back to back, having already won gold in the 400m IM. Hungarian world record holder Katinka Hosszu was well off the pace and finished seventh. Ohashi also beat Hosszu in the 400m IM.
Kieran Pender provides this round-up of Australia’s golden day in rowing.
Related: Australia’s latest ‘oarsome foursomes’ double up in Olympic rowing gold rush
The major news in the last 24 hours has, of course, been Simone Biles. More specifically, the American gymnastics great’s withdrawal from the team event citing mental health concerns.
This piece from Barney Ronay writes on the relentless pressure shouldered by athletes.
Related: Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka highlight the untenable pressures of Big Sport | Barney Ronay
Related: We expect our heroes to be perfect. Simone Biles is unafraid to show she is not
There is a bit of debate happening around which sports should and should not be included in the Olympics, particularly football. Let’s go down the rabbit hole!
Beau Dure, a Guardian freelancer, writes in: “I actually wrote for Soccer America that women’s soccer no longer needs the Olympics and would be better off emphasising continental tournaments, including what I’m calling the AAA – Americas, Africa, Asia.
Related: Men’s football is no longer a fit for it to remain in the Olympic Games | Jonathan Liew
It’s what they’re calling Boxall 2.0. Titmus’s coach has done it again, although not quite with the same gusto as the other day.
Titmus meanwhile says: “I’m just from a small town in Tassie and this goes to show that if you believe you can do something, you can 100% do it.”
Let’s take a quick look at the men’s rugby sevens semi-finals, in which Team GB have suffered a comprehensive 29-7 loss to New Zealand. There is no kind way of putting this – they were pretty much hammered. NZ controlled the match and held possession for all but about a minute, and will face either Fiji or Argentina in the final depending which reigns in the second semi about to get under way.
A lot of the attention has been on Titmus but it should also be noted that Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey was in front for a lot of that race. She took it to an outrageously strong field and only fell in the final 50.
The women’s 200m freestyle medal ceremony is happening now at the Tokyo Aquatic Centre, and Titmus has just stepped onto the top of the podium. She gives her team a wave, holds up that gold medal.
Here’s this from Kieran Pender on the ground:
Related: Ariarne Titmus wins another Olympic gold for Australia as Katie Ledecky fades
Confirmation that Throssell is through, and will take lane six in the final.
Semi-final two of the women’s 200m butterfly has just started and we’re looking t you Zhang Yufei. The Chinese swimmer is off to a flyer. She leads for the entirety and second-placed Hungarian Boglárka Kapás never looked like catching her. Yu Liyan is third and Australia’s Brianna Throssell fourth. Is it enough for the final? We will soon see. That second semi was quicker than the first.
While we were gone the rowing continued and China won the women’s quadruple sculls final. Poland finished in second and Australia’s quartet of Ria Thompson, Rowena Meredith, Caitlin Cronin and Harriet Hudson claimed bronze. Australia are having a very nice day at the Sea Forest Waterway.
Gary Naylor writes in and has this to say: “Ariarne Titmus has ice in her veins – not sure that helps in the pool to be honest, though it doesn’t slow her.”
There’s an analogy in there somewhere.
Titmus has spoken to Seven.
“I could see I was trying to move Siobhan down on the third 50. I had no idea where she was on the last lap. I knew I had Katie covered but Siobhan was the person that was there. I felt a little bit that was there. I felt a little bit, my legs started to go a bit but I’m happy to get it done.
The 21-year-old Hungarian world record holder made that look easy peasy lemon squeezy with an Olympic-record time of 1:51.25. Japan’s Tomoru Honda took silver and Federico Burdisso bronze.
Soon we have semi-finals in the women’s 200m butterfly, the men’s 200m breaststroke (Australia’s Zac Stubblety-Cook looked rapid in the heats). The morning rounds out with three finals: the women’s 200m individaul medley, the women’s 1500m freestyle (where Ledecky has to back up barely an hour after the 200m final) and the men’s 4 x 200m freestyle relay. The concluding race will be particularly tasty for the Guardian, with our three main outlets – the UK, Australia and the USA – all going head for gold.
That was emphatic. I must admit I had concerns on the final turn but that was the moment Titmus lengthened her stroke. It was calm. It was composed. She has another gold to add to her cabinet and coach Dean Boxall is back on that railing! Not so much hip thrusting this time but definitely a little bit of movement in that region. Ledecky, meanwhile, finished fifth. Did Titmus get in hear head? Who knows. Maybe. It’s an Olympic record for Titmus by the way.
1 Ariarne Titmus
2 Siobhan Bernadette Haughey
3 Penny Oleksiak
It’s the final lap and Titmus needs to move. Move she does. This is going to be very tight.
Titmus has some work to do. Ledecky is half a body in front and under world record pace.
Madi Wilson is in lane eight. Ledecky has made the strongest start and Canadian Penny Oleksiak has gone out VERY fast.
Women’s 200m freestyle time! Ariarne Titmus v Katie Ledecky 2.0! This could be big. If Titmus beats Ledecky again she can lay claim to the American’s crown. Ledecky has the consistency but Titmus has the speed and can use it when it counts.
We are also on Dean Boxall watch.
Russian Kliment Kolesnikov wins in 47.11, Chalmers is second in 47.80 and Hungaruan Nándor Németh third in 47.81. A good swim by Chalmers without setting the world on fire.
Right let’s go to the pool where the men’s 100m freestyle semi-final is about to start. Kyle Chalmers is in a battle with the USA’s Caeleb Dressel. Chalmers is fifth at the turn.
That’s why the Dutch are world champions. What an epic race. They made that early mistake when an oar caught on the water but kept their cool for an ice-cold finish.
1 Netherlands
2 Great Britain
3 Australia
The other contenders for bronze are Poland, and those top three are starting to pull away from the Aussies.
Australia are tracking for bronze at the moment. The Netherlands have made a miraculous recovery and are back in the lead, their bow poking out the front with the Brits in chase.
Britain have dropped back a bit as Italy surge and then suddenly, swiftly fall back themselves. What a strange race. At 1,000m Britain are back in the lead.
Oh no! The Dutch have pulled a crab! Lost control of the oar and have a hell of a lot of recovering to do.
Italy, Poland and Estonia round out the field. It’s getting windy there – you can hear it on TV. They’re away, and Estonia have fired out of the blocks. Australia, the Rio 2016 silver medallists, have also started well but the Dutch are a smidge in front.
The men’s quad scull final will start shortly. The Australian quartet of Jack Cleary, Caleb Antill, Cameron Girdlestone and Luke Letcher finished second to the Netherlands in their heat to guarantee direct passage. The Dutch, who are world champions in this event, finished 1.74 seconds quicker.
Team GB’s Jack Beaumount, Angus Groom, Harry Leask and Tom Barras bounced back from disappointment in the heats with a more convincing performance in the repechage.
ICYMI, here are the final moments of that race.
It’s GOLDEN HOUR baby!!
Alexander Purnell
Spencer Turrin
Jack Hargreaves
Alexander Hill
Our Aussies doing us so so proud! @SamsungAU pic.twitter.com/tvGFi8DZWp
And so, Australia have more Oarsome Foursomes – plural. Both the women and men have blitzed their finals. Hang around as we turn our attention to the men’s quad scull final before hopping over to the pool.
Wow. That was a dramatic race, not least because there was very nearly a clash of boats in the final 100m when Team GB veered off course and had to steer themselves back on track. That would have cost them crucial seconds, and it did. For the first time since 2000, Britain have not won gold in this event. Australia went out hard and led the whole way, holding off a late surge. Italy it must be said came seemingly from nowhere. Kudos.
With 250m to go Australia are probably unbeatable, and GB and Romania are toe to toe for silver.
Have the Aussies peaked too early? Italy are charging too and move into third place.
Wait! Team GB are embarking on a late run. They’re trying to catch them. There is still some way to go though but they are surging with 500m to go. Wow.
The US are some way back as the boats start to spread. Italy also well off the pace.
It’s a boat length now. Wow. Team GB have a lot of work to do to rescue this. They’re in the silver medal position and the Romanians are in the third.
Britain are behind here. The pressure is on as Australia build a 0.85 gap on the rest of the field.
The Aussies are leading by a small margin early on but the Brits and Dutch on their tails.
Great Britain have won gold in the men’s four at every Olympics since 2000 and the combination of Games debutants Oliver Cook, Matthew Rossiter, Rory Gibbs and Sholto Carnegie showed their intention of taking a sixth straight title by leading from the off in their heat, beating Italy. So they are the team to beat.
And they’re off!
We’re counting down to the men’s four final now. The Brits are in lane four, the Aussies lane three, and the Americans in lane two.
Thank you Tom! Well it’s been a busy morning already but it’s about to get busier. If you’re not already strapped in would suggest doing so because here’s what’s coming in terms of Australian medal hopes. There are plenty of others from Team GB, Team USA and many other nations and I’ll take you through them as we approach each race:
10:10am local time – men’s four final (Alexander Purnell, Spencer Turrin, Jack Hargreaves, Alexander Hill)
On that note of Aussie excellence, I’ll hand over the blog to another excellent Aussie: Emma Kemp. Bye!
The world champs are now the Olympic champs! They were imperious all through the final and were threatened maybe for around the first 83cm and the last 83cm. Netherlands are second after a late, threatening second and Ireland catch GB for bronze! A great race and for all the Aussie greatness it was a brave, fierce surge from the Dutch at the end. Australia won with an Olympic record too (although we can caveat that with the fact that it hasn’t been competed since 1992).
Australia still first by 1.37 seconds after 1500m with 500 to go. Netherlands are catching slightly though with GB third and Ireland fourth.
Australia, the world champs, recorded a world’s best time over 500m and they extend their lead as they pass the halfway mark. The Netherlands are second and Britain are third with China fourth.
Canada have been the reigning champions in this event for 29 years … but it was last in the Olympics in 1992 so it’s not that impressive. Australia just lead the Netherlands after 500m and GB are a surprise third.
And now we have the women’s four final. Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, Netherlands, China and Poland are your teams.
Meanwhile, Nick Honeywell writes in on sports that shouldn’t be in the Olympics. My nomination is kitten killing. No way they should let it back in. Britain disgraced themselves in the 1896 Games. Anyway, here’s Nick:
It’s an epic tussle as the line approaches (OK, they approach the line) and France surge to victory! Just! Netherlands are in second and China are third. It was the narrowest of victories for the French. Britain were fourth.
500m to go: Netherlands are pushing away from the French with China in third. Britain in fourth …
Halfway point: China then Netherlands, France and GB. Still tight but China are accelerating…
The men’s double sculls final now: Switzerland, China, France, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Poland are your protagonists. China are the firm favourites here but, you know, SPORTS! France have the best chance of an upset. It’s France, Netherlands and then China after 500m but it’s pretty tight.
And it’s Romania who ease home for gold! A late surge sees New Zealand capture silver and the Netherlands collect bronze. Romania won in an Olympic record too.
No one is catching Romania for gold with 500m to go. New Zealand and the Netherlands battle for silver…
The Netherlands team’s coach is watching this from his hotel room after he had to isolate because of Covid protocols. It’s Romania, who stretch out into the lead over the Netherlands and Lithuania at 500m – a lightning start. But at halfway New Zealand have made up water and move into second.
We now have a run of six A finals (ie you win gold if you win) coming up. First, it’s the women’s double sculls, featuring USA, New Zealand, Romania, Canada, the Netherlands and Lithuania.
As we ready ourselves for the start Mark from Wisconsin has something to say on sports that should be dropped from the Games: “Drop skateboarding cuz you’re making it too mainstream for normals. Replace with uncool sports like cornhole or log rolling.” Log rolling is definitely not uncool.
It’s the women’s quadruple sculls B final next. USA, Britain, New Zealand and France are your crews. GB leap/row very fast out to an early lead and are not seriously challenged after that. New Zealand, France and the US finish after them in that order.
Meanwhile, Paul McDevitt writes in on sports that shouldn’t be in the Olympics. “I don’t think there should be sports played by millionaire professionals like golf, basketball, football or tennis although they at least are sports played by the masses unlike skeleton, ski jumping, pole vault etc, which are sports only ‘played’ by athletes completing in an Olympics,” he says. So you’re saying your school didn’t have a skeleton bob track? You missed out, Paul.
The men’s four B final is next. Poland finish ahead of Canada, Switzerland and South Africa respectively. Just to clarify: there are no medals in the B finals (rebutting the myth that everyone gets a medal these days) but it’s nice to win something.
And who will win the men’s quadruple sculls B final? I’ll tell you who: either China, Norway, Germany and Lithuania. Aaaand it’s China who romp home, the kings of the B final every one of them. Germany, Norway and Lithuania finish second, third and fourth.
Reader Joe Surtees writes in (reading and writing – all in one day!) with a question that will provoke … some debate.
“I wanted to ask whether people had an opinion on what sports really shouldn’t be in the Olympics?” he says. Or asks. Has he asked or said here? “For me, it has to be anything involving a horse.” That’s gymnastics out then, but do go on. “Equestrianism seems more to do with who can afford to buy and keep an impressive animal, than anything else. Look at the ages of the competitors, they hardly scream Olympian ideal. It’s surely more animal training than sport.”
Related: Bruce Springsteen’s daughter Jessica selected for US Olympic showjumping team
We’re on to the women’s four B final now in the rowing. It’s a battle for North American supremacy as Canada take on the US with Denmark and Romania also in the mix. The US have a narrow lead over the Romanians with 500m to go. The Americans coast home first but it’s a scrap between the other three before Denmark pip Romania for second. Canada are fourth.
We have a fairly quiet 30 minutes or so of competition ahead. There are plenty of B finals in the rowing (ie: the very good rowers rather than the very, very good rowers). It’s the men’s double sculls at the moment where the ROC came home first ahead of New Zealand.
One for our Australian readers now: there are plenty of medal opportunities for the Aussies in the next few hours. Here is what is coming up in rowing and swimming. All times are AEST.
Related: Australia at the Olympics on day 5: schedule of who and when to watch in Tokyo today
Simone Biles’s former USA gymnastics Aly Raisman has spoken in support of the Olympic champions after her withdrawal from the team event yesterday in Tokyo.
“It is so much pressure,” Raisman said in an interview with ESPN. “It’s the most pressure I’ve ever seen on a gymnast and maybe even Olympic athlete, and I can’t imagine how hard it is for her.
Related: Simone Biles to take ‘a day at a time’ before further Tokyo participation
Hello. It’s been a busy 24 hours at the Olympics with a shower of medals (expected), rain showers (expected) and Simone Biles’s withdrawal from the team gymnastics competition (unexpected), something that prompted a shower of articles (I was a little unclear about how I was going to get another shower reference in there).
But enough of the past. What’s coming up today? My colleague Martin Belam has provided a guide to today’s highlights. Read on …
