LeBron James isn't satisfied and demands much more from Team USA despite dominant win over Serbia

 

 (AP) — The similarities were striking. Maybe fitting in the birthplace of déjà vu.

Simone Biles sitting off to the side at the Olympics. USA Gymnastics team doctor Marcia Faustin by her side. A look of concern on both their faces.

Three years ago in Tokyo, the scene ended with Biles removing herself from multiple finals to protect her safety — prompting an international discussion about mental health.

Yet Biles is determined to write a different ending to the story in Paris. The 27-year-old American star wasn’t dealing with any sort of block or trauma but something far more common to gymnasts, particularly ones who have been doing this for two decades.

Just like in Tokyo, Biles and Faustin briefly disappeared. Unlike Tokyo, Biles returned not in a sweatsuit but with her left leg heavily taped after tweaking her calf during her warmup on floor exercise. She spent the rest of the afternoon walking around with a noticeable limp everywhere except the competition floor.

The woman who has been saying over and over and over that this isn’t 2021 went out and proved it on Sunday inside star-studded Bercy Arena, shaking off what U.S. coach Cecile Landi described as a minor calf issue to post the top score in the all-around and put whatever lingering ghosts there may be from Tokyo in the rearview mirror.

Biles finished at 59.566, well clear of reigning Olympic champion and teammate Sunisa Lee, saluting the crowd after her dismount on uneven bars, her final event. She hopped off the podium, danced with good friend Jordan Chiles, and has no plans to stop her quest for gold in Tuesday’s team final and Thursday’s individual all-around.

“It was pretty amazing, 59.5,” Landi said. “Not perfect so she can improve even (but) ... just really good.”

Landi said the issue popped up a couple of weeks ago and she described it as minor. There was no discussion of Biles pulling out.

Instead, Landi and her husband, Laurent — who have long served as Biles’ personal coach in Texas — encouraged her to take a breath and keep going as Laurent applied heavy doses of tape to her leg.

“We told her to remind herself like she’s capable of doing it,” Landi said. “She knows she’s got it and it’s OK and then she did. So, really excited for her.”

The issue hardly slowed her down. Biles posted the highest score on floor and vault — both after the injury — as she tries to add to her career total of seven Olympic medals.

The only event final Biles is likely to miss is uneven bars, where she opted not to attempt a unique skill she submitted to the International Gymnastics Federation on Friday. She can still opt to do it during the team final, opening the door for it to be entered into the sport’s Code of Points with her name attached.

Yet that appeared to be far from Biles’ mind when she finished up her bars set. Instead, there was a mixture of relief and the urge to soak in the moment following her dismount at what could be the final competition of her unparalleled career.

The same could be said of her teammates after the heavily favored Americans finished at 172.296, more than five points clear of second-place Italy (166.861) as they search for what they’re calling “redemption” following a runner-up finish to Russia three years ago.

“They’re happy and relieved,” Landi said. “Day 1, now moving on to team finals, all-around finals, a couple event finals hopefully.”

Landi said Biles’ leg was feeling better as she moved through the events and expects her to be available going forward.

The reality is the Americans — especially with Russia out of the mix due to the war in Ukraine — don’t need to rely on her as much as they have in previous Games.

Biles, Lee, and Chiles went 1-2-3 in the all-around during early qualifying, though Chiles will miss the all-around final due to rules that limit countries to entering two athletes per competition.

There’s a chance Chiles will make the floor exercise final should she finish in the top eight. Lee is practically a lock for the beam and bars finals, with 2020 floor exercise champion Jade Carey in a good position to join Biles in the vault final.

That is, of course, if Biles is healthy.

The injury added a dash of drama to an event that’s become a must-see for athletes and celebrities alike.

The stands were buzzing and filled with stars. Tom Cruise posed for selfies while waiting for Biles to emerge. Snoop Dogg had front-row seats, and Ariana Grande, Jessica Chastain, John Legend, and Anna Wintour were also on hand.

Biles arrived in Paris as the face of the U.S. Olympic movement and maybe the Olympics themselves. The buzz around her return to the Games has been palpable, with NBC leaning heavily into her star power by splashing Biles’ face on countless promotions in the lead-up to Paris.

Her gravitational pull is real. Athletes across the Olympic spectrum have said they want to make it a point to catch the most decorated gymnast of all time put on a show that is uniquely hers. Among them: LeBron James and the U.S. men’s basketball team, which was busy Sunday with their Olympic opener.

James & Co. may have a chance to catch Biles later this week, provided her calf cooperates, hardly a given in a sport where the injury rate is nearly 100%.

Biles has spent the last 11 years largely avoiding the kind of physical setbacks that have ended the Olympic journeys of so many others.

Not for Biles — not yet anyway — as her chance at a golden send-off remains very much in the offing even if she literally is now forced to take it one ginger step at a time.

Leon Marchand carried the comparisons to Michael Phelps and the hopes of a nation on his broad shoulders.

The 22-year-old Frenchman handled it all with ease, setting himself up to be one of the biggest stars of the Paris Olympics.

With a flag-waving crowd cheering his every stroke, Marchand delivered a swimming gold for France with a dominating victory in the men’s 400-meter individual medley Sunday night.

Marchand was ahead as soon as his head popped from the water and he steadily pulled away from the field in what was essentially two separate races: Marchand going against the clock and everyone else competing for silver and bronze.

“I started very, very fast,” he said. “I didn’t look at the other lanes. I was focused on myself.”

Marchand was under world-record pace on the final turn but faded a bit coming home, touching in 4 minutes, 2.95 seconds — an Olympic record, but just shy of his own world mark of 4:02.50. Marchand claimed that vaunted standard at last year’s world championships in Fukuoka, Japan, erasing the record held by Phelps for 15 years.

Not surprisingly, the young Frenchman has been mentioned frequently as the next Phelps — especially since he was guided by the same coach, American Bob Bowman, who was the most decorated athlete in Olympic history throughout his career.

Marchand lived up to those staggering expectations, for one night at least, and Phelps was in the building to witness it all as a member of NBC’s broadcast team.

Marchand was a bit delayed getting to the interview area. Turns out, he had to take a phone call — from French President Emmanuel Macron.

“He said that he watched the race with all of his family and they all screamed when I won,” Marchand said through a translator.

Huske and Walsh go 1-2 for the U.S. women in the 100 butterfly

Not long after Marchand walked off deck, Torri Huske knocked off world-record holder Gretchen Walsh in the women’s 100 butterfly, using a strong finish to get her hands to the wall just ahead of her teammate in a 1-2 finish for the United States.

The favorite went out with her usual strategy: start fast and try to hold on. It worked at the U.S. trials, where she set her world record of 55.18 last month, and she was under record pace at the turn.

But Huske chased her down in the race that really mattered. The winner touched in 55.59 -- about the length of a finger ahead of Walsh’s time of 55.63.

When Huske saw the “1” beside her name of the scoreboard, she reached across the lane rope to give Walsh a hug while breaking down in tears.

“I feel like there was a lot of pressure on me,” Walsh said. “It was definitely a fight to the finish and seeing the 1-2 up there was amazing. I’m so proud of Torri. I’m proud of myself.”

A bronze for Chinese swimmer embroiled in controversy

Zhang Yufei of China claimed the bronze in 56.21, which is sure to raise eyebrows since she was one of nearly two dozen swimmers from her country who tested positive for a banned substance ahead of the Tokyo Olympics but were allowed to compete. Zhang has insisted that she’s racing clean.

Italian Martinenghi wins men’s 100 breaststroke over record-holder Peaty

The men’s 100 breaststroke marked the end of Adam Peaty’s dominant run in that event.

The gold medalist in both Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, Peaty took a long layoff to deal with mental health issues. Upon his return, he worked his way back up to speed and came into the final as the top qualifier.

But the star from Great Britain came up just short of making it three golds in a row. Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi was the winner out in lane seven, touching in 59.03. Peaty shared the silver with American Nic Fink after they finished just two-hundredths behind the winner in 59.05.

“I’m not sad at all,” Peaty said. “I think anyone that’s done sport — you put yourself on the line every single time. So there’s no such thing as a loss.”

Full-time engineer Fink ties for silver

For the 31-year-old Fink, it was the first Olympic medal of his late-blooming career. His swimming career, that is. Fink also works full-time for an engineering firm, clocking in remotely from his home in Dallas when he’s not at the pool.

Fink and his wife are expecting their first child.

“Yeah, age is just a number in some sense,” Fink said. “But in another sense, it means more at this time, especially because there were definitely windows to close my career earlier and I kind of kept going for the love of the sport. To have this much success this late has been icing on the cake and a lot of fun.”

Marchand’s fans went wild

Of course, on Day 2 of swimming, everyone was playing second fiddle to Marchand.

La Defense Arena was packed with more than 15,000 fans, many of them with their faces painted in the blue, white, and red of the tricolore banner.

Chants of “Léon! Léon! Léon!” and an impromtu rendition of “La Marseillaise” broke out in the rugby stadium a full 15 minutes before Marchand walked on deck for the first final of the evening.

“It’s quite difficult to describe everything because it’s incredible for a swimmer to have this atmosphere in the pool,” Marchand said. “How could you not smile when you’re in front of 15,000 people? I want to thank all the French people who came tonight.”

Marchand, who trained in the U.S. while attending Arizona State University, came through with flying colors to capture the first gold medal of his career, but surely not the last.

The silver went to Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsushita, who finished nearly 6 seconds behind the winner in 4:08.62. American Carson Foster claimed the bronze at 4:08.66.

Marchand is just getting started in Paris. He’s entered in three more individual events.

“I was really proud of what I did tonight,” he said. “I’m going to enjoy it tonight, but then I’m going to relax because I have seven or eight days left.”

Marchand had to wait for everyone else to finish, then he climbed on the lane rope and pumped his left fist for an adoring crowd that packed a stadium normally used by famed rugby club Racing 92.

An appropriate venue for this performance.

No one raced faster than Marchand.

 LeBron James was feeling some nervousness, some butterflies, maybe even a bit of angst as he listened to the national anthem play before his first Olympic game in 12 years.

It all went away quickly.

James and Kevin Durant — the two most experienced Olympians on this American team — opened the Paris Games and a U.S. bid for a fifth consecutive gold medal with a near-perfect show. Durant made his first eight shots and scored 23 points, James added 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and the U.S. rolled to a 110-84 win over Serbia in the Olympic opener for both teams on Sunday.

“That’s the best game we’ve played so far,” James said after the Americans improved to 6-0 this summer, 1-0 in the tournament that matters.

James and Durant were a combined 18 for 22 from the field — 8 of 9 for Durant, 9 of 13 for James — as the U.S. had no trouble with the reigning World Cup silver medalists from last summer in the Philippines. Jrue Holiday scored 15, Devin Booker had 12 and Anthony Edwards and Stephen Curry each added 11 for the U.S.

“Whatever it takes,” James said. “It’s going to be somebody different every day. And we have that type of firepower.”

The U.S. improved to 144-6 overall in Olympic play, 56-0 when scoring more than 100 points. The Americans won without Jayson Tatum of the NBA champion Boston Celtics — someone who just agreed to the richest contract in NBA history — in the rotation, which even U.S. coach Steve Kerr thought was crazy when he decided to do it.

“I went with the combinations that I felt like would make sense,” Kerr said. “I talked to him and he’s incredibly professional. And that’s tonight. It doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way for the rest of the tournament. He’ll make his mark. Our guys know this: The key to this whole thing is to put all the NBA stuff in the rear-view mirror and just win six games. Jayson’s the ultimate pro, a champion, he handled it well and he’ll be ready for the next one.”

Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic scored 20 points for Serbia, while Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 14. Serbia got outscored 54-27 from the 3-point line — a big liability for the Americans in the warmup games before this tournament, but strength on Sunday — and let the U.S. shoot 62% while getting held to 42% from the floor.

With Jokic on the floor in his 31 minutes, the teams were even. In the nine minutes when Jokic wasn’t on the floor, the U.S. outscored Serbia by 26 points. The final margin: is 26 points.

“They got the best player in the world,” Edwards said.

Both teams return to action on Wednesday, with the U.S. taking on upstart South Sudan — a rematch of a 101-100 escape win for the Americans in an exhibition in London earlier this month — and Serbia meeting Puerto Rico in what could essentially be an elimination game for both teams.

It was Serbia 10, U.S. 2 early. It was U.S. 108, Serbia 74 the rest of the way.

“We knew they were going to come out and play hard,” Booker said. “They did the same thing when we were in Abu Dhabi. They have a lot of talented guys over there. We didn’t underestimate them.”

Before the tournament started, Serbia coach Svetislav Pesic — who coached against the 1992 Olympic “Dream Team” from the U.S. — said this version of the American squad was even better than that first NBA-star-filled bunch that took the world by storm at the Barcelona Games. And when told of that comment a couple of weeks back, Kerr laughed it off.

“When Chuck Daly coached the Dream Team, he never called timeout,” Kerr said.

It took all of 2 minutes, and 41 seconds of these Olympics for Kerr to call one. Serbia jumped out to that eight-point lead, putting the Americans into a quick hole. Kerr subbed Joel Embiid out for Anthony Davis after that first stoppage and things changed in a hurry; a three-point play by James midway through the first gave the U.S. its first lead and a lob from James to Edwards put the Americans up 25-20 after one.

By then, the Durant show was underway.

He finished his 8-for-8 first-half showing with a fadeaway, falling to the court, that beat the halftime buzzer for a 58-49 lead. And the lead steadily grew from there: Edwards shook free of Serbia’s Nikola Jovic for a nifty baseline score to make it 84-65 after three, a play so good that Curry was dancing in delight and mimicking using a video-game controller on the sideline.

“Very, very important to get off to a good start in this tournament because every game is so big,” Curry said after his Olympic debut. “You only have six of them if you want to get to the gold and obviously, Serbia is a great team. They run an intricate offense and a very physical defense. KD was unbelievable in the first half and gave us a huge boost, and our defense in the second half opened the game up.”

The fans’ first standing ovation for Rafael Nadal occurred when he wasn’t even in their presence, merely an image shown on a video screen as he waited in a stadium hallway to walk out on the court used for the Paris Olympics and the French Open, a tournament he made his domain.

They stayed on their feet, some applauding, some raising their phones to capture images of the moment when he emerged and stepped on the red clay so familiar to him. Chants of “Ra-fa! Ra-fa!” rang out at various times, and plenty of red-and-yellow Spanish flags flapped in the stands, as Nadal beat Marton Fucsovics of Hungary 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 in the first round Sunday to set up a blockbuster showdown against rival Novak Djokovic at the Summer Games.

“It’s been always super special to play against Novak, no? No doubt about that. But the difference is normally we have been playing for finals or for semifinals. This,” the 38-year-old Nadal said with a chuckle, “is a second round.”

Monday afternoon’s match, scheduled to be the second of the day in Court Philippe Chatrier, will be the 60th meeting between this pair of greats, more than any other two men have played against each other in the sport’s Open era, which began in 1968. Djokovic, a 37-year-old from Serbia, leads the head-to-head series 30-29, and his 24 Grand Slam titles make him the only man in tennis history with more than Nadal’s 22.

Djokovic had knee surgery in June after tearing his meniscus during the French Open in early June but recovered quickly — and well — enough to reach the Wimbledon final two weeks ago before losing to Carlos Alcaraz. Nadal, meanwhile, has dealt with a series of injuries the past two seasons, including hip surgery in 2023, and his right thigh was taped Sunday. He needed a finger on his right hand treated by a trainer in the third set against Fucsovics.

“Every single match that I played against Novak — almost every single match — I arrived in a different situation (than) I am (in) today. So that makes the match more difficult for me. And more unpredictable,” Nadal said. “But I always have hope, I always believe, and I’m going to give my best.”

Nadal made a last-minute decision to remain in the singles bracket, a day after he won in doubles with partner Alcaraz, and said he wasn’t sure if he would participate in both events.

“It’s always amazing when they play each other,” said Stan Wawrinka, whose three Grand Slam titles all came via wins against Nadal or Djokovic in the finals. “Two legends of the sport. It’s going to be special, that’s for sure.”

Not only did Nadal play Sunday, but for stretches, particularly in the early going and in crunch time down the stretch, he played very much like a version of himself everyone is used to seeing: the sprinting, sliding, grunting star who owns 22 Grand Slam trophies in all and won Olympic gold medals for Spain in singles in 2008 and doubles in 2016.

And the crowd loved it.

“His fighting spirit is at the top, still,” Fucsovics said. “He is not at his best level (of) playing. But if he has a good day, he can beat anybody.”

There was no way to know at the outset, of course, whether this might be Nadal’s last singles match at these Olympics … or in this stadium that has meant so much to his career (and vice versa) … or, indeed, anywhere. He’s been rather coy lately on the subject of his retirement, even after saying in 2023 that he figured 2024 would be it for him.

“Of course, I know that maybe it’s the last time that I play here. Maybe not,” Nadal said with a shrug. “I can’t confirm that because I don’t know.”

After going through a morning practice session to test his fitness, he made the call to play, about 18 1/2 hours after Nadal and Alcaraz — Spain’s old-and-new pairing of tennis superstars — won the first match they’ve ever played together as a doubles team.

When Nadal and Fucsovics began warming up under a blue sky with a hint of a breeze, there were shouts of “Ole!” Spectators rose from their seats when Nadal jumped out to a 3-0 lead after just 13 minutes en route to taking the first set against an overmatched Fucsovics, a 32-year-old who is ranked 83rd.

Nadal said he felt loved by the fans.

And he did not look like someone ready to be done, not at all, particularly at the beginning of the match. In the second game, Nadal sprinted, then slid, to deliver a stinging cross-court backhand that won a point and elicited some gasps from the audience.

That, truly, is what it felt like: an audience fascinated with viewing, and appreciating, a performance by someone whose oeuvre is so well-known. The chase-every-ball relentlessness. The bullwhip of a lefty forehand with an over-his-head finishing pose. The grunts of exertion that punctuate so many racket swings.

Fucsovic’s career resume is no match for Nadal’s, naturally. Fucsovic has reached one Grand Slam quarterfinal, at Wimbledon in 2021, and exited in the first round of each major tournament so far this season.

Nadal, actually, is without a Slam match win in 2024, too. He missed the Australian Open in January because of a hurt hip muscle near where his operation was, bowed out in the first round of the French Open in May against eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev, then sat out Wimbledon in July because he wanted to avoid needing to prepare to play on the grass courts there before switching back to clay for the Olympics.

After Nadal raced through the opening set, things slowed down a bit for him. Suddenly, it was Fucsovics who was dictating baseline exchanges, especially with his own booming forehand.

Eventually, to no one’s surprise, the muscle memory kicked in for Nadal. Soon enough, he was smacking one last forehand winner, then raising both arms with fists clenched.

Now will come a tougher task against Djokovic, one that is sure to draw a ton of attention.

“It was a good test,” Nadal said about getting past Fucsovics across 2 1/2 hours. “And the good thing is I was able to play at a good level of tennis for a while. That always gives hope.”

Contrasting reactions of jubilation and disappointment were seen on the faces of surfers coming ashore after their heats Sunday, as the elimination rounds commenced in the Paris Olympics surfing competition in Tahiti.

“Today is the first real day of competition,” said Johanne Defay from France, who beat Australia’s Molly Picklum in a morning heat. “It’s make or break for all the athletes.”

For the second day of competition, the men’s and women’s competitors had eight heats of two surfers, with the winner advancing to the next round and the loser getting eliminated, losing their chance at winning a medal at the Paris Olympics.

The women’s heats went first during the rainy, blustery morning. Waves were noticeably smaller and with fewer barrels than on the opening day of the competition.

The conditions worked in favor of some surfers who have less experience on the typically larger, heavy waves that Teahupo’o is famed for.

“There are not many barrels today, so the coaches asked me to make some adjustments,” said the competition’s youngest athlete, 15-year-old competitor Siqi Yang from China, after beating Sol Aguirre from Peru. “I never felt afraid, just excited.”

By the time the men began their heats midday, the sun had come out and winds remained strong, with “a lack of conditions” causing some heats to have extra time added to the clock. But surfers still managed to fetch high scores on barrel waves.

Noticeably absent from the second round were surfers from the United States team, who all won their heats on the opening day of the competition to qualify directly for round three.

“It’s been nice— everyone slept in and had a leisurely breakfast,” Shane Dorian, U.S. Olympic surfing team head coach, told The Associated Press. “Some are out surfing, some are hanging with families. It’s nice to have a down day.”

Despite losing their chance at gold, some competitors expressed appreciation that surfing was included in the Olympics.

“For us surfers, it’s just really nice to show our sport a little bit more and get some more attention and show people that this is not only sport— this is a lifestyle,” said Camilla Kemp— the first woman to represent Germany in an Olympic surfing competition— who was eliminated from the competition after losing to Sarah Baum from South Africa.

The Paris Olympics is only the second time surfing has been included as an Olympic sport after it debuted at the Tokyo Olympics.

For the women’s competition: Yang from China, Sarah Baum from South Africa, Shino Matsuda from Japan, Defay from France, Taina Hinckel and Tatiana Weston-Webb from Brazil, Yolanda Hopkins from Portugal, and Anat Lelior from Israel won their heats and qualified for the next round.

For the men’s competition, Kanoa Igarashi and Connor O’Leary from Japan, Jordy Smith from South Africa, Kauli Vaast from France, Ramzi Boukhiam from Morocco, Alan Cleland Quinonez from Mexico, Jack Robinson from Australia, and Filipe Toledo from Brazil won their heats to qualify for the third round.

Moving forward, the competition functions as a single-elimination, head-to-head bracket. Each heat will feature two surfers, with the winner advancing to the next round and the loser being eliminated. The losers of the two semifinal heats will compete in the bronze-medal match.

The next competition day will be determined after officials assess wave conditions. ___

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games