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(AP) — The first sign of trouble Thursday night came when Noah Lyles started rounding the curve in the Olympic final of the 200 meters — the sprint that has always been his best race.
Normally at the curve, Lyles starts making up ground, then pulling away from what have been, for the last three years, game but overmatched contenders.
This time, his momentum stalled. Instead of Lyles reeling in the runner two lanes to his right, Letsile Tebogo of Botswana, Tebogo pulled farther away. The American favorite, who had gone three years without losing in the 200, labored into the finish and collapsed onto the track after ending up in third.
The insidious specter of COVID, the killer virus that upended the globe four years ago and made the last Olympics part of its collateral damage, struck at the Paris Games, too.
In a bracing reminder that the virus is still very much a factor, even if its deadly fingerprint has been blunted, the world’s marquee sprinter, racing on the world’s biggest sports stage, revealed he had tested positive two days before his shocking, but now not-inexplicable, bronze-medal finish in the 200.
“I still wanted to run,” Lyles said, wearing a mask, as he spoke to reporters, whose mere congregation in a jam-packed scrum underneath the stadium was unthinkable three years ago at the delayed Tokyo Games. “They said it was possible.”
With the blessing of officials at USA Track and Field and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, who said they followed protocol, Lyles did run.
He finished in 19.70. That was .39 off his personal and .24 behind the 21-year-old Tebogo. Lyles’ U.S. teammate Kenny Bednarek finished second, marking the second straight Olympics in which he and Lyles finished 2-3.
“When I saw Kenny fade, I knew Noah was far, far, far away behind us,” Tebogo said. “So that means I’m the Olympic champion.”
It was Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone vs her own world record
An hour after that shock, American Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone lowered her world record for the sixth time, finishing the 400-meter hurdles in 50.37 seconds for another Olympic blowout.
That was one of three gold medals and eight overall the U.S. won on a night filled with big events.
Tara Davis-Woodhall jumped 7.10 meters to capture the long jump and get in the Olympic win column next to some greats, including Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Brittney Reese.
Grant Holloway cruised to gold in the 110 hurdles, claiming the Olympic title that eluded him three years ago in his only major championship loss.
Lyles seemed like a sure thing until things got weird the night before
Coming into Paris, Lyles, the three-time world champion with the American record and the world’s best time of 2024 on his resume, had seemed like as sure a thing in the 200 as any single athlete at the track this side of McLaughlin-Levrone.
After opening with a scintillating win in the 100 four nights earlier, he was trying to become the first man to complete the 100-200 double since Usain Bolt did it eight years ago.
A troubling sign, however, came the night before when Lyles finished second in his semifinal heat, also to Tebogo. It marked the first time he had lost a 200-meter race of any sort since his disappointing third-place finish in Tokyo.
He also hurried out of the stadium after that loss and went to the medical tent — a rare occasion when he didn’t stop to talk to reporters. His coach said he was fine.
Lyles said he tested positive two days after the 100-final
Turns out he wasn’t. Lyles said he tested positive early Tuesday morning and quickly got into quarantine.
He drank fluids, rested as much as possible, and tried to gear up for the race. USATF said in a statement that Lyles was given “a thorough medical evaluation” and chose to compete.
“We respect his decision and will continue to monitor his condition closely,” the statement said.
The scene after the race was jarring. Usually one of the most energetic guys on the track, both before and after any sprint, Lyles collapsed, rolled onto his side, and gasped for breath. He turned over on his hands and knees, then went to one knee, and balanced himself with his fist.
He finally stood up and wobbled toward the medics, signaling for a cup of water. Then, he left in a wheelchair.
“It definitely was an effect,” Lyles said. “But I mean, to be honest, I’m more proud of myself than anything for coming out and getting the bronze medal with COVID.”
This bronze medal feels different than the last one
It will take time for all the repercussions of this race to play out.
There’s still a chance Lyles could end up as the bigger-than-track superstar he set out to become after his disappointment in Tokyo three years ago.
Those Games, staged in front of no fans while the COVID pandemic raged, took a mental-health toll on Lyles, one he said made him less than himself and led to his disappointing finish in Tokyo.
After he won the 100 Sunday night, he took that Tokyo bronze medal out during his news conference, dropped it on the table, and explained it was the thing that motivated him to become a new person and a new sprinter for this Olympic cycle.
The 100-meter thriller sealed the first half of the deal. But instead of breezing through the 200, just getting to the starting line became a product of “trying to get me on as much medication as we legally could to make sure that my body was able to just keep the momentum going.”
Lyles posts that he likely won’t run in the 4x100 relay
As Thursday turned to Friday in Paris, Lyles took to social media and posted his thanks to fans for their supportive messages and his congratulations to Tebogo and Bednarek.
He also said “I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics,” where he was supposed to run the anchor leg in the final of the men’s 4x100 on Friday.
“It is not the Olympic I dreamed of but it has left me with so much Joy in my heart,” he wrote. “I hope everyone enjoyed the show. Whether you were rooting for me or against me, you have to admit you watched, didn’t you?”
The spectacle Lyles headlined struck a sobering chord at a revitalized Olympics that were supposed to be all about the return of fans and the return of the Games as we used to know them.
Lyles reminded us that there will never be a “post-COVID” Games.
A javelin gold for Pakistan, and silver for India
Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem put together the best meet of his life in winning the men’s javelin at Stade de France.
Nadeem set a new Olympic record for winning gold. His throw of 92.97 meters in his second attempt smashed the old mark of 90.57 set by Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway in 2008.
India’s Neeraj Chopra, the 2020 Olympic champion, took silver at 89.45 meters, a season-best.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone insists and insists that her biggest competition in any race is those 10 hurdles that circle the track.
These days, those are no problem. The real thing she’s running against is the clock.
McLaughlin-Levrone once again broke her own world record, powering over the 400-meter hurdles in 50.37 seconds on Thursday night to defend her Olympic title.
The 25-year-old American has now lowered the world record six times. She was in the lead around the corner and breezed down the home stretch to beat teammate Anna Cockrell by 1.50 seconds.
“Obviously, there are people next to you and they’re going to push you but it doesn’t matter if you don’t focus on the barriers in front of you,” McLaughlin-Levrone explained. “That was my focus, trying to be as efficient as I could over my 10 hurdles and trying to lower that time every time.”
McLaughlin-Levrone had set the old record, 50.65 seconds, on June 30 at the U.S. Olympic trials.
This was billed as one of the must-see races at the Stade de France, given the rivalry between McLaughlin-Levrone and Femke Bol of the Netherlands. Cockrell crashed the party, with Bol finishing third. She walked down the track, shaking her head.
McLaughlin-Levrone will make competitors do that.
“I screwed it up,” Bol said. “I’m not sure where I made the mistake. I just got so much lactic acid with 300 meters to go. I’m not sure why, I really have no explanation. This is just a bad race.”
Once she crossed the finish line, McLaughlin-Levrone looked up at the scoreboard and gave a quick smile. She makes breaking records look almost like a stroll in the park.
And while she knows there are things she can clean up, it was inching closer to a perfect race — and to breaking into 49-second territory.
“It’s just building up that capacity in your legs to handle going that fast,” said McLaughlin-Levrone, who married Andre Levrone Jr., a former NFL football player, in 2022.
McLaughlin-Levrone moved to 3-0 in races against Bol. She beat Bol, the standout from the Netherlands, at the Tokyo Games in 2021 (Bol finished third) and again a year later at world championships in Oregon. McLaughlin-Levrone was hurt last season and didn’t race when the world championships were in Budapest. It opened the door for Bol to win her first world crown.
After this race, McLaughlin-Levrone gave Bol a consoling hug and some encouraging words.
“I was like, ‘You are amazing,’” she said. “She just started the hurdles not too long ago, so I think she’s doing great.”
Cockrell, too, lowered her personal best time by 0.77 seconds.
“I’ve always called myself a showtime girl,” Cockrell said. “When the lights come on, I come out to play.”
Coached by Bobby Kersee, McLaughlin-Levrone has been steadily building toward this moment for two years. Mostly out of the spotlight, too. She’s been racing in sprints at 200 and 400 meters and also in the short hurdles — 100 meters, and 60 meters indoors — to gain experience, speed, and technique.
It all paid off Thursday with another record-breaking performance in front of a packed house.
“I knew this was possible,” said McLaughlin-Levrone, who celebrated her birthday Wednesday. “I knew it was probably going to take a world record to win this race.”
Afterward, she paraded around the track wearing a tiara her sister-in-law brought for her to wear.
“I just was hoping it would be a race worthy of holding (the tiara) up,” McLaughlin-Levrone cracked.
She burst on the scene as a teenager, the runner with the unique ability to juggle while riding a unicycle. She competed in the 2016 Olympics at age 17.
The sprinter from New Jersey who went to the University of Kentucky and now lives in Los Angeles also has a gold medal from Tokyo as part of the women’s 4x400 relay.
She’s raising her hand to be on the 4x400 relay team in Paris.
“I’m always here,” McLaughlin-Levrone said, “if they need me.”
Down by 11 in the fourth quarter, against what looked like overwhelming odds, the U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team got a spark.
Six points in two seconds.
Kevin Durant and Devin Booker provided that wild sequence to start the comeback, Stephen Curry had a scoring night like almost none other in U.S. Olympic history, and the Americans will play for gold at the Paris Games. Curry scored 36 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 2:16 left, and the U.S. beat Serbia 95-91 in a semifinal classic on Thursday night.
LeBron James had the fourth triple-double in Olympic history for the U.S., which trailed by 17 points in the first half and faced an 11-point halftime deficit — the biggest one successfully overcome by an American team since NBA players were added to the Olympic mix in 1992.
“I’ve seen a lot of Team USA basketball,” Curry said. “And that was a special one.”
Serbia led by 11 with 7:19 left. The rest of the way, it was all U.S. The Americans won a game where they led for 3 minutes and 25 seconds. Serbia led for 35:12 — nearly 90% of the game.
But it’ll be the U.S. against host France for gold in a dream matchup for the host nation on Saturday, while Serbia will face Germany earlier on Saturday for bronze. The gold-medal game is a rematch from the Tokyo Games three years ago, where the Americans prevailed 87-82.
“I’m really humbled to have been a part of this game,” U.S. coach Steve Kerr said, tipping his hat multiple times to Serbia. “It’s one of the greatest basketball games I’ve ever been a part of. They were perfect. They played a perfect game. Our coaches were saying Villanova-Georgetown, for all of our older readers and viewers out there.
“But they played the perfect game, and they forced us to reach the highest level of competition that we could find. And our guys were incredible in that fourth quarter, and they got it done.”
Joel Embiid scored 19 points on 8 for 11 shooting and James added 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists for the U.S., which is now assured of its 20th medal in 20 Olympic appearances.
“Joel was everything,” said James, who has two of the four triple-doubles in Olympic men’s history; he also had one in 2012, while the Soviet Union’s Aleksander Belov in 1976 and Slovenia’s Luka Doncic in 2021 had the others. “Made every big shot.”
Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 20 points for Serbia, which got 17 from Nikola Jokic and 15 from Aleksa Avramovic. The Serbians were 0-3 against the U.S. this summer, getting blown out in the first two meetings and then looking poised for a win of their own on Thursday.
The whole game changed in the fourth after a wild sequence saw the U.S. score six points in two seconds. Durant made a 3-pointer while Anthony Davis was getting fouled. The U.S. got another possession because of the foul, and Booker immediately made another 3-pointer.
Just like that, a 78-67 lead for Serbia was down to 78-73. The comeback was on, and Curry’s 3 put the U.S. up for good. He added a pair of free throws with 8.2 seconds left to make it a two-possession game and the Americans escaped.
Curry’s 36 points were the second-most in a game by a U.S. men’s player in Olympic history, one shy of Carmelo Anthony’s record 37 against Nigeria in 2012. And Anthony, sitting courtside, was Curry’s biggest cheerleader. When the Americans tied it with about 3:35 left, Curry gave Anthony a big smile. When the go-ahead 3 rattled home, Anthony leaped from his seat. And when it was over, the two shared a long embrace.
“That was a godlike performance,” Durant said of Curry.
Serbia coach Svetislav Petic kept saying the same thing all summer, that the team the U.S. put together for the Paris Games was better than any in Olympic history. Even the Dream Team, he insisted. His mind wasn’t changed after this one.
“They’re that good,” he said.
A barrage of Serbian 3-pointers had the Americans squarely on the ropes until the game changed in the fourth. But in the end, the U.S. improved to 144-6 all-time in Olympic play, 63-4 since NBA players were added to the Olympics in 1992.
“Perseverance, hard work dedication, Chef Curry and Joel ‘Process’ Embiid,” James said. “Big-time win for us. We knew we were going to be challenged. We knew it was going to be the toughest game to date. Total effort.”
Gold is the goal, but that didn’t keep the U.S. from celebrating upon returning to the team hotel. Down 42-25 at one point, down 11 in the fourth, the Americans outscored the Serbians 32-15 in the final quarter.
“I know we want to win the gold, but you’ve got to celebrate the small moments, too,” Durant said in a video distributed by USA Basketball well after midnight as he grabbed a postgame meal next to his mother, Wanda. “Guarantee you, everybody in here, they’ll never forget this night. Everybody here will remember this night for the rest of their lives. That’s how special this is.”
The comeback kept Durant’s hopes of becoming the first four-time Olympic men’s gold medalist very much alive and gave the U.S. a chance to return to the international basketball mountaintop. The Americans were fourth at the World Cup last summer, a result that spurred some NBA stars like James and Curry to be part of this team.
And of all the U.S. semifinal moments, this was like few others. The four-point final margin was the second closest in American history in the Olympic semifinals; the U.S. beat Lithuania by two in the 2000 semifinals in Sydney, on the way to gold there.
They’re one win away from another.
“I’m 39 years old, going into my 22nd season, I don’t know how many opportunities and moments I’m going to get like this to compete for something, compete for something big, and play in big games,” James said. “And tonight was a big game.”
Karch Kiraly made one request when the decisive fifth set began: Win or lose, make sure to enjoy the moment.
The U.S. coach asked his players to take in the atmosphere, one of the best for women’s volleyball, with mighty Brazil on the opposite side of the net.
Now, Kiraly and the Americans will get another shot under the bright Olympic lights — a shot to repeat as gold medalists. And it took every extra hustle play by every American on the floor against the experienced Brazilians.
“It’s kind of sad that either team has to lose a match like that,” Kiraly said, “because both programs are legendary in terms of the consistently high level of play in good tournaments like the Olympics and world championships.”
As Brazil’s fans waved flags, chanted, and sang from every corner of South Paris Arena, the U.S. women edged their fellow world powerhouse in a five-set thriller on Thursday, a compelling rematch of their Tokyo final won in straight sets by the U.S.
That marked the Americans’ first Olympic title, and now they can make it two in a row.
Brazil got within 12-10 in the fifth before the U.S. held on for the victory, 25-23, 18-25, 25-15, 23-25, 15-11.
When Kathryn Plummer’s winning spike for her match-high 26th point closed it out, the Americans huddled together in a huge group hug and bounced on the court in celebration.
They will play in Sunday’s Olympic final against top-ranked Italy, which swept No. 3 Turkey in the late match. Brazil will go for bronze on Saturday against Turkey.
The Brazilians haven’t won gold since the London Games 12 years ago.
Brazil led 5-3 and was 10 points from taking the first-to-15 fifth when the Americans rallied to tie it at 6-all and momentarily went ahead on Jordan Thompson’s spike.
“We just told ourselves to let it rip, have confidence, be fearless, it’s a quick game to 15,” Plummer said. “That’s what you have to do, you don’t really have time to fix things or make adjustments very quickly, so it was just play the game you know how to play and go rip it.”
Both teams pulled off incredible saves close to the floor or even well out of bounds near their own benches to keep long points alive — and one fifth-set rally lasted more than 30 seconds.
The stands shook all afternoon with chants of “Bra-zil!” and “Monster Block!”
Brazil ranked second in the world, two spots above the Americans, and now has one last opportunity to reach the podium.
“They stuck with us all the way three years since the last Olympics. Everyone is just giving us so much energy. Definitely, they’re a part of this whole journey,” Brazil outside hitter Julia Bergmann said of the enormous support. “We’re going to get a medal for them, too.”
Many of these women have been battling it out under the lights of the big world stage for more than a decade now.
Brazil middle blocker Thaísa is 37, and she was the second-oldest on the court behind four-time U.S. Olympian Jordan Larson, who will be 38 in October.
“We fought. It was a really good fight. They played really well. It was five sets. I don’t even know what to say, it’s an emotional time for us now,” Bergmann said. “We have to refocus, regroup, and go for the bronze.”
Almost three months ago during Volleyball Nations League play, Kiraly had the U.S. team in Rio de Janeiro when Brazilian coach Zé Roberto asked him about a possible scrimmage before the Paris Olympics.
“We have a good relationship, I get along really well with him,” Kiraly said. “I have huge respect for him.”
Kiraly and Roberto ultimately decided to do it, as long as their teams weren’t in the same group for the early matches in France. Once the pools were announced in June and their teams didn’t have to face off right away, they made it happen.
So, Brazil visited the Americans’ training center for four sets once the teams arrived — some with their top lineups, some with the reserves to give those women key court time and practice before the matches that mattered.
Kiraly made a lineup change after the team’s five-set defeat to China on July 29 to open group stage play, moving veterans Larson and Kelsey Robinson Cook to reserve roles and bringing in Avery Skinner and Plummer. The Americans bounced back to beat Serbia two days later.
The U.S., which earned a heartbreaking bronze at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games despite being No. 1 in the world, jumped to leads of 5-0 and 8-3, but Brazil fought back and the teams traded points for much of the initial set. Brazil took its first lead on a block by Carol against Plummer for a 16-15 edge.
Brazil built a 19-16 lead before the Americans pulled ahead 21-19, and then Brazil got back to 21-all.
Plummer scored consecutive points in the attack to secure the first set 25-23.
That was just a preview of a match that would go the distance.
“It’s going to be two heavyweights going at it,” Kiraly said ahead of time.
And oh how spot-on he was.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone set another world record. Grant Holloway won that elusive Olympic gold medal. Jasmine Moore made some American jumping history. And Tara Davis-Woodhall got to wear that cowboy hat.
It was medal-mania at the Stade de France for the red, white, and blue on Thursday, with the country taking home three gold, three silver, and two bronze.
On a night when Noah Lyles revealed he tested positive for COVID-19 — and still captured bronze in the 200 — nearly every other American contender was celebrating medals. So much so, that they were running into each other during their victory laps.
Maybe the best scene came when McLaughlin-Levrone, wearing a tiara, met up with the cowboy-hat-donning Davis-Woodhall, who had won the long jump competition.
“I was like, ‘You did it.’ And she was like, ‘YOU did it,’” Davis-Woodhall recounted. “And I was like, ‘Oh my god, I did it’. ... Is this real? Am I dreaming?”
That was a common theme on the evening. Moore, who finished third in the long jump, was the first American woman to qualify for the same Olympics in both the long jump and triple jump. Now, she’s the first American woman to win bronze in both.
“I don’t think I pictured this for myself, and it’s way better than I could have imagined,” Moore said. “It makes you want to work even harder because you know what it feels like (winning a medal).”
Holloway knows the feeling. He’s been dominant in the 110-mter hurdles, winning three straight world titles. But Olympic gold has eluded him — until Thursday. He and Daniel Roberts finished 1-2.
“Today, it was just my day,” said Holloway, who earned silver at the Tokyo Games. “I have the Olympic title, I have the world titles, indoor titles. We just put a lot of whipped cream on it and now we are just going to keep rolling, rolling, rolling until that very last race and put the cherry on it.”
Kenny Bednarek and Lyles started the medal parade by finishing second and third, respectively, in the 200. Lyles, the 100 champion, didn’t look like his speedy self and revealed after the race he tested positive two days ago. He woke up in the middle of the night with chills and a sore throat.
“It definitely affected my performance,” Lyles said. “I’m more proud of myself more than anything, coming out here to get a bronze with Covid.”
It was another big performance by McLaughlin-Levrone, who broke the 400-meter hurdles record for the sixth time. She had company on the podium in silver-medalist Anna Cockrell.
The night was reason to belt out a tune.
“I was singing ‘Love On Top’ in the call room, so shout out to Beyoncé,” Cockrell said. “I’m really happy. I’m ugly crying, but I’m really happy.”