Olympics Day 8 Latest: Katie Ledecky wins 800-meter freestyle swimming gold

PARIS -- PARIS (AP) — U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky won the women’s 800-meter freestyle in the 2024 Paris Games, earning her ninth Olympic gold medal. She joins Michael Phelps as the only swimmers to win the same event at four straight Summer Games. Also, U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson finished second in the women’s 100 finals, losing to Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia.

Titmus and Ledecky shared a long embrace while still in the water moments after the 800 finish.

Speaking to reporters after the games, she remembered watching Ledecky from Australia — “I was in grade six in primary school, that’s how remarkable she is” — when the swimmer won her first of four straight golds in the event at the 2012 London Games.

Titmus tuned in again for Ledecky’s race in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro games while racing a junior event in Hawaii.

“It ended up being eight years later I challenged her in her fourth consecutive in the 800,” Titmus said. “So I’m really proud of myself and I feel very honored and privileged to be her rival, and I hope I’ve made her a better athlete. She has certainly made me become the athlete I am. I felt so privileged to race alongside her.”

Julien Alfred said she watched Usain Bolt’s former races in the 100-meter dash on Saturday to prepare for her own gold medal run.

Alfred’s victory was the first Olympic medal for Saint Lucia. Bolt won the men’s race in 2008, 2012 and 2016. Alfred said she studied how Bolt executed to deliver the win for her island.

She said she grew up in Saint Lucia too poor to buy shoes and had to run barefoot, in her school uniform, in poor facilities. She said she hopes winning the gold will lead to a new stadium being built in Saint Lucia to grow track and field.

Katie Ledecky sang the national anthem side by side with bronze medalist American teammate Paige Madden as a fan held a sign reading “Legendecky” before the medal ceremony.

Ledecky expected Ariarne Titmus “to give me everything she had” in the 800-meter final.

“We got 36 hours of rest, so I knew it was going to be a tough race,” Ledecky said. “I felt confident coming into it but I knew it was going to be tough no matter what all the way down to the finish. I just had to stick in the race and trust myself, trust my training and trust that I know how to race that event.”

French star Léon Marchand missed out on a medal in the 4x100-meter mixed medley relay, even after he nearly caught China and U.S. in his breaststroke leg.

France finished fourth a night after Marchand capped his brilliant individual Olympics with four golds: in the 200 and 400 individual medleys, 200 butterfly and 200 backstroke.

The American foursome set a world record in 3:37:43. The event began with the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.

The American foursome set a world record in 3:37:43 -- the event began with the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.

American Katie Ledecky won the 800-meter freestyle in her fourth consecutive Olympics, becoming only the second swimmer to do so.

Her ninth gold in all also tied for second most among all Olympians — Summer or Winter — behind Michael Phelps’ 23.

Ledecky won in 8 minutes, 11.04 seconds to edge Australia’s Ariarne Titmus in 8:12.29. The 27-year-old hugged U.S. teammate Paige Madden afterward on the pool deck.

U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky has won the women’s 800-meter freestyle for her ninth Olympic gold medal. It is the fourth time she has won this event.

The women’s 100-meter dash was won in 10.72 seconds by Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia.

Alfred trains in Austin, Texas and went to the University Texas, but the watch party was in Saint Lucia as the sprinter delivered her island its first ever Olympic medal.

She was sobbing with her nation’s flag draped over her shoulder as she briefly hugged American bronze medalist Melissa Jefferson.

Sha’Carri Richardson ran 10.87 for silver and Jefferson was third at 10.92. Alfred led the entire 100 meters.

Katie Ledecky is off the starting blocks and underway in the 800-meter freestyle final as she chases her ninth gold medal and history.

Ledecky would join fellow American Michael Phelps as the only swimmers, male or female and from any country, to win four Olympic gold medals in the same event.

It also would match the second most Olympic wins — Summer or Winter — in any sport behind Phelps’ 23.

Ledecky would join Finnish distance runner Paavo Nurmi, Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, American swimmer Mark Spitz and American sprinter Carl Lewis with nine.

Ledecky also is the record holder at the distance with a time of 8:04.79.

Sha’Carri Richardson has won silver in the women’s 100-meter dash, losing to Julien Alfred in the final.

Melissa Jefferson got bronze to give the Americans two medals in the event. Alfred won the first ever Olympic medal for Saint Lucia.

Two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica was not in the final. She abruptly pulled out ahead of her semifinal heat.

Alex Walsh of the United States was disqualified and denied the bronze medal in the women’s 200-meter individual medley.

Walsh, who finished third, was disqualified for not completing the backstroke leg on her back and turning too soon, according to World Aquatics, which cited a referee. She declined to stop in the mixed zone to speak with reporters.

Fellow American Kate Douglass was second for silver in the race won by 17-year-old Canadian Summer McIntosh. It’s her third gold medal of the Paris Olympics.

The women in the 100-meter dash are on a wet track preparing for the final.

It started to rain about 45 minutes before the women came out to try the starting blocks ahead of the final.

It was dry during the three semifinal heats, but the final will be run in both rain but also on a track that is pooling water in places.

Two-time Olympic 100 champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce’s quest for another title ended abruptly when she pulled out of the 100-meter semifinal.

No immediate reason was given for Fraser-Pryce’s scratch, which came up on the scoreboard only moments before she was supposed to race Sha’Carri Richardson and Julien Alfred in the evening’s second semifinal.

Earlier in the day, Fraser-Pryce was one of several athletes blocked from entering the training track, the Jamaica team said on its social media site. The team said she was eventually let in. It did not say whether that played into her sudden scratch.

American Ryan Crouser is an Olympic champion again, taking home his third straight gold in shot put by once again holding off countrymate Joe Kovacs, who got silver.

The rain is really coming down at Stade de France about 15 minutes before Sha’Carri Richardson tries for gold in the 100-meter final.

Cameramen and others working around the field have had their hoods up for a while, trying to stay dry. Some water is even pooling on the inner edge of Lane 1 in the corners of the purple Olympics track.

Femke Bol surged from fourth to cruise past leader Kaylyn Brown of the United States in the final 10 meters to give the Netherlands the gold medal in the 4x400 mixed relay. Bol ran the anchor leg in 47.93 seconds.

Brown went 49.19 on the final leg after taking the baton with the Americans out front. The runner-up finish came one day after the U.S. team of Vernon Norwood, Shamier Little, Bryce Deadmon and Brown set the world record at 3 minutes, 07.41 seconds. The Netherlands won the event at 3:07.43.

French pole vaulter Anthony Ammirati missed out on earning a medal at his home Olympics when his crotch got caught on the crossbar.

The 21-year-old went to clear the crossbar when his crotch caught the bar and he fell to the ground. After four attempts, Ammirati finished with a combined score of 5.60 and in 12th position, not enough to advance to the final.

It is raining at Stade de France for Saturday night’s track and field events.

The rain started during the men’s shot put and women’s triple jump and ahead of the women’s 100-meter final, which features three Americans in the field.

American sprinter Twanisha Terry earned a spot in the women’s 100-meter final even though she finished third in her heat.

Terry ran an 11.07 to earn a spot based on speed. Through the three heats, three women ran inside 10.9 and eight inside 11.0 seconds.

Terry joins fellow Americans Sha’Carri Richardson and Melissa Jefferson in the final later Saturday.

American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson received a roaring ovation ahead of her heat in the women’s 100-meter semifinal, and then she finished second to earn an automatic berth into the final.

Richardson ran 10.89 seconds but lost the heat to Julien Alfred of St. Lucia, who ran a 10.84. She and Richardson are the only two women at these Games to crack 10.8 seconds this year.

Two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica has pulled out of the women’s 100-meter dash.

The 37-year-old won the 100 in 2008 and 2012 and has said Paris will be her final Olympics. She is not entered in the 200 meters.

Fraser-Pryce gave no immediate reason for withdrawing. She was scheduled to run in the same heat as Sha’Carri Richardson.

U.S. sprinter Melissa Jefferson won the first of three semifinal heats to advance to the final of the women’s 100-meter dash.

The top two in each heat earn an automatic berth in the final. Jefferson ran it in 10.99 seconds.

Sha’Carri Richardson runs in the second.

Tokyo shot put champion Ryan Crouser has an early lead in the Paris Olympics final.

The American opened with a mark of 22.64 meters, well clear of countrymate and Tokyo silver medalist Joe Kovacs at 21.69.

Crouser’s gold in Tokyo came with a world record mark of 23.56. Still five attempts left for each of them.

Nine total Olympic gold medals is what Katie Ledecky is going for on the second-to-last day of swimming competition at La Defense Arena.

That would match the second most Olympic wins — Summer or Winter — in any sport behind Michael Phelps’ 23.

Ledecky would join Finnish distance runner Paavo Nurmi, Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, American swimmer Mark Spitz and American sprinter Carl Lewis with nine.

In the morning heats of the 800-meter race, Ledecky was fastest in 8 minutes, 16.62 seconds. She also is the record holder at the distance with a time of 8:04.79.

The women’s 800 meters is scheduled to begin at 10:08 p.m. CEST (4:08 p.m. EDT).

Ireland’s Cathal Doyle went from sixth on the final turn of the 1500-meters to earn a spot in the semifinals.

The crowd was on its feet cheering for France runner Azeddine Habz, who was leading until Doyle surged from the middle of the pack and caught him at the line.

The top three finishers in each heat advance to the semifinals.

Halfway to its goal of gold, the U.S. men’s basketball team has the No. 1 seed going into the medal round at the Paris Olympics.

And now the real games start.

Anthony Edwards scored 26 points, six players reached double figures for the U.S. and the Americans wrapped up the top spot coming out of group play by rolling past Puerto Rico 104-83.

— By Tim Reynolds

The second semifinal of the women’s 100 meters has a deep field featuring Sha’Carri Richardson and Julien Alfred: the only two women at the Olympics to crack 10.8 seconds this year.

Also in the field is two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. The 37-year-old won the 100 in 2008 and 2012.

Only the top two finishers in each heat automatically qualify for Saturday night’s final. That means at least one of those three will have to wait to see if they have one of the two best times among non-automatic qualifiers in the evening’s three semifinals to advance.

It was a similar situation at last year’s world championships — not the same three runners, but also heavily stacked — and it was referred to as “The Semifinal of Death.”

— By Jenna Fryer

Zheng Qinwen has claimed China’s first tennis singles gold medal in Olympics history by defeating Donna Vekic of Croatia 6-2, 6-3.

The 21-year-old Zheng displayed the same powerful serves and groundstrokes she used to eliminate No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals and now has the biggest title of her career.

Not that Zheng hasn’t shown plenty of promise already. She is ranked seventh in the world and was the runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka at the hard-court Australian Open in January.

— By Howard Fendrich

Boxer Imane Khelif of Algeria clinched a medal following days of sharp scrutiny and online abuse as misconceptions about her gender have exploded into a larger clash about identity in sports.

Khelif defeated Anna Luca Hamori of Hungary 5:0 in the quarterfinals of the women’s 66-kilogram bout.

Khelif will win at least a bronze medal after defeating Hamori for the second victory of her tumultuous second trip to the Olympics.

— By Greg Beacham

The U.S has advanced to the semifinals of the women’s soccer tournament at the 2024 Olympics in Paris after beating Japan 1-0 on Trinity Rodman’s goal in extra time.

The Americans will next face Canada or Germany on Tuesday with a spot in the final on the line.

As Algerian boxer Imane Khelif and Hungarian boxer Anna Luca Hamori begin their bout, they each score a few strong blows. Each blow by Khelif is met by a roar by Algerian supporters.

Hamori and Khelif have never sparred, but they have competed in the same tournament before.

— By Megan Janetsky

Simone Biles has won the gold medal in women’s fault. It is his her seventh Olympic gold medal and 10th overall.

Trinity Rodman collected the ball, cut inside and whipped a shot into the top corner of the net with her left foot just at the end of the first half of extra time.

After giving the U.S. a 1-0 lead on Japan in the quarterfinal match, she was then swamped by celebrating teammates. Megan Rapinoe, watching from the stands, seemed to enjoy that, too.

— By James Robson

It will soon be Rebeca Andrade’s turn to take to the vault runaway

The ace Brazilian gymnast is facing a tall order in the defense of her Olympic title. Biles was stunning on her two attempts, finishing with a score of 15.300.

There was speculation Andrade could attempt a Yurchenko triple twist during the final. Andrade has submitted the vault to be named after her in the sport’s Code of Points.

Andrade has performed it at training but did not try it the all-around final when she finished second to Biles.

— By Sam Petrequin

Simone Biles is on good position to win her second Olympic vault title.

She scored an average of 15.300 for her two vaults, a rotation that included her signature Yurchenko double pike, which is the hardest being done in competition by any female gymnast.

— By Will Graves

The game is going to extra time after ending 0-0 in regulation.

It opened up in the final moments, with the U.S. finally stretching Japan’s defense consistently.

There will be 30 minutes of extra time, and if the game is still tied, it will go to penalties.

—By James Robson

Long before the bout begins, Algerian fans like 37-year-old Delilah Benrabah were already gathering outside the stadium cloaked in their country’s flag to support boxer Imane Khelif.

She said she was watching her social media in recent days and felt the spread of false information about Khelif was “shameful.”

“She’s a very strong Algerian women,” Benrabah said. “In Algeria, we don’t accept people hurting Algerians. We are here to support our team. We have to be united. We are here to give her support and we wish she gets the gold medal.

“She’s far from home, and we’re here to support her.”

— By Megan Janetsky

Simone Biles has spent the last decade-plus redefining what is possible in gymnastics. The American star has had five skills named after her in the Code of Points after completing them in competition.

Two of those are in the vault, her upcoming event while seeking a seventh Olympic gold medal and 10th overall.

Biles I (vault version)

As with a lot of gymnastics elements, Biles took a Cheng vault and added another layer of difficulty — this one an extra half twist on a vault originally done by China’s Cheng Fei.

The vault requires Biles to do a round-off onto the vault, then a half-twist onto the table before doing two full twists. It entered the Code after she made it part of her routine at the 2018 world championships.

Biles II (vault version)

This may be the most dazzling, most daring one of them all.

The Yurchenko double pike had never been completed by a woman in competition, and few men have even tried. She began tinkering with it in 2021, but it’s in the last year that it has morphed into perhaps the most show-stopping thing done in the sport.

The vault asks Biles to do a round-off back handspring onto the table, then two backward flips in pike position with her hands essentially clasped to her knees. She does it with so much power, she can sometimes overcook it. At the U.S. Olympic trials last month, it drew a standing ovation.

“No, it’s not normal,” longtime coach Laurent Landi said after she drilled it at the 2023 U.S. Championships. “She’s not normal.”

— By Will Graves

▶ Read more about Biles redefining her sport

Jade Carey won’t defend the floor exercise gold medal she won three years ago in Tokyo, but she is in the vault final this afternoon.

Carey is the second American gymnast competing among the eight top vaulters, along with Simone Biles.

The 24-year-old earned a spot in final following a third-place finish behind Biles and Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade. Carey made the vault final in Tokyo, finishing eighth.

— By Sam Petrequin

The quarterfinal game between United States and Japan has kicked off at Parc des Princes in Paris.

It looks like a full house again after the men’s match between the U.S. and Morocco on Friday.

The winner of this match plays either Canada or Germany in the semifinals in Lyon on Tuesday.

— By James Robson

Just the name Simone Biles is enough to trigger applause.

More than an hour before the vault event that also features Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade, the presenter at Bercy Arena announcing that expected duel set off wild shouts from the still half-empty venue.

If Biles wins, it will be her seventh Olympic gold medal, and 10th overall. Andrade was second to Biles in all-around.

▶ Read more about Biles’ pursuit of history at the Paris Games

— By Sam Petrequin

The U.S. women’s national team made one change to the starting lineup for its quarterfinal match against Japan in Paris.

Korbin Albert replaced Sam Coffey in the midfield. Coffey was ineligible for the game because of yellow card accumulation.

The United States also made forward Jaedyn Shaw available after she missed the first three games with a leg injury.

— By Anne M. Peterson

▶ Read more about the U.S. looking to reclaim Olympic women’s soccer gold

Matt Ebden and John Peers won Australia’s second tennis gold medal in Olympic history on Saturday, beating Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram of the United States 6-7 (6), 7-6 (1), 10-8 in a match tiebreaker in the 2024 Games men’s doubles final.

Olympics doubles uses a first-to-10, win-by-two tiebreaker in place of a traditional third set.

Ebden and Peers trailed by a set and 4-2 in the second before breaking Ram’s serve to begin the comeback. Their tennis gold follows the one won for Australia by Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde in men’s doubles at Atlanta in 1996.

— By Howard Fendrich.

▶ Read more about the men’s Tennis doubles

IOC President Thomas Bach said Saturday the “hate speech” directed at boxers Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting at the Paris Olympics is “totally unacceptable.”

“We will not take part in a politically motivated … cultural war,” Bach said at a news briefing at the midway point of the games, that also tried to draw a line under days of global scrutiny about the female boxers’ gender.

“What is going on in this context in the social media with all this hate speech, with this aggression and abuse, and fueled by this agenda, is totally unacceptable,” the International Olympic Committee leader said.

— By Graham Dunbar

▶ Read the latest on boxer Imane Khelif

Simone Biles ’ second Olympic all-around gymnastics title is a testament to her mental and physical toughness.

The 27-year-old has long relied on both during a career that’s made her the greatest of all time in her sport. The mental health advocate practiced what she preached during the all-around final.

Biles closed her eyes and reset herself after two rotations and responded with fabulous routines on balance beam and floor exercise that made her the third woman in Olympic history to claim multiple all-around crowns.

She goes for her third gold medal at the Paris Games in the women’s vault final starting at 4:20 p.m. EDT.

— By Will Graves

▶ Read more about Biles’ road to being arguably the greatest U.S. gymnast in history

These Olympics have been full of memorable moments since the dazzling opening ceremony: The Seine River was too dirty for the triathlon swim to go off as scheduled, a gender controversy has emerged in women’s boxing, and of course, Simone Biles has dazzled while winning two gold medals with more still up for her taking.

Here’s a look at some of the other memorable moments from the first half of the games:

— By Jenna Fryer

1. The internet fell in love with “Pommel Horse guy”: The world was introduced to the lovable Stephen Nedoroscikwhen he helped the U.S. men’s gymnastics team win its first Olympic medal in 16 years.

2. Leon Marchand ruled at the pool:The French star racked up with four golds in four swimming events

3. “The Real John Wick” fueled meme after meme: Yusuf Dikec, 51-year-old Turkish pistol shooter, went viral on social media for a seemingly casual attitude while shooting his way to a silver medal in mixed 10-meter air pistol.

4. A scene from the opening ceremony sparked controversy: The opening ceremony prompted a storm of outrage for a contentious scene featuring drag queens and other performers.

▶ Read more about memorable moments from the Paris Olympics

Noah Lyles finished second in his opening heat of the 100 meters but still advanced and kept alive his hopes for the sprint double.

The American got off to a sluggish start and finished in 10.04 seconds, which was .06 behind Louie Hinchliffe, a British sprinter being trained by Carl Lewis.

The second-place finish means Lyles won’t have the premier lane choice when he races in the semifinals Sunday. If he advances there, he’ll race for the gold medal later that evening.

— By Pat Graham

▶ Read more about track and field at the 2024 Olympics

Snoop Dogg carried the torch in the leadup to the 2024 Olympics and made his way around Paris. His latest stop is the Palace of Versailles for equestrian competition.

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