Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone sets world record as Team USA extends medal lead in Paris Olympics

Noah Lyles sent a post on Instagram after finishing third in the men's 200-meter final and reports surfacing of him testing positive for COVID-19 emerged on Thursday. Lyles thanked his supporters and other competitors while announcing that his Paris Olympics run is likely over.

"First I want to thank God for getting me through this entire Olympics! Second I want to congratulate [Letsile Tebogo and Kenny Bednarek] and everyone else on an amazing Olympic 200m final. Finally I want to thank everyone for the supportive messages," Lyles wrote. "I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics. It is not the Olympic I dreamed of but it has left me with so much Joy in my heart. I hope everyone enjoyed the show."

After the race, Lyles needed to be tended to by medical staff. He was seen wearing a mask on Wednesday and before the race on Thursday. NBC then announced that Lyles had tested positive for COVID-19 two days earlier, finding out from his "distraught" mother. USA Track and Field confirmed the positive case to the BBC. He is also asthmatic.

Lyles' reaction time of 0.173 was the slowest of the eight runners in the race. He was tied for the slowest reaction time in the men's 100m, as well, but he still managed to pull off a personal best of 9.79, winning by five-thousandths of a second. Of course, that was before he was sick.

Lyles message suggests he will likely not participate in the upcoming men's 4x100 meter relay.

He leaves Paris having won the United States' first gold medal in the men's 100m since 2004.

Ryan Morik contributed to this report.

American hurdler Grant Holloway won his first Olympic gold medal in Paris on Thursday.

The American hurdler cruised to victory in the men’s 110-meter final on Thursday. The three-time world champion and silver medalist in Tokyo three years ago exploded out of the blocks to win gold.

Holloway finished at 12.99 seconds, well clear of teammate Daniel Roberts in second at 13.09. Roberts out-leaned Rasheed Broadbell of Jamaica, who finished with bronze

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Setting the world record in the women's 400-meter hurdle wasn't enough for Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone on Thursday. She wishes her record-breaking 50.37 time was lower.

"Yeah, I mean, across the line I was definitely grateful for that time, I was hoping it was a little faster, but like I said, I'm sure there's some things in the middle there we can clean up," she told reporters after the race.

Earlier this summer, she lowered the 400 hurdles world record for the fifth time since June 2021. She previously won gold at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, where she set the world record with a 50.65. 

The U.S. men's basketball team faced a double-digit deficit for most of its semifinal game against Serbia, but a fourth quarter comeback led by Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid stunned Nikola Jokic and company as the U.S. won 95-91.

Curry led all scorers with 36 points, including two big free throws to seal the win in the final seconds. James notched his second triple-double of his Olympic career with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists.

Serbia was led by Bogan Bogdanovic who scored 20 points, while Jokic had 17 points and 11 assists.

Serbia went into the fourth quarter with a 76-63 lead, but could not hold off an avalanche of scoring and defensive plays by the U.S. in the closing minutes. The U.S. trailed by as much as 17 points in the first half.

The U.S. previously defeated Serbia in group play 110-84.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has gotten into the habit of breaking world records. 

The 25-year-old track star did just that in the women’s 400-meter hurdles final on Thursday to win gold and successfully defend her Olympic title. McLaughlin-Levrone set a new world record with an official time of 50.37 seconds, becoming just the first woman in Olympics history to win gold in that event twice. 

McLaughlin-Levrone has set that record six times, most recently breaking the record at the U.S. Olympic trials in June. 

Team USA teammate Anna Cockrell ran a personal best of 51.87 to win the silver medal.

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Tara Davis-Woodhall is an Olympic champion. 

The two-time Olympian took home her first medal after landing on top of the podium in the women’s long jump final. She jumped 7.10 meters to secure a gold medal for Team USA. 

Malaika Mihambo of Germany, who was the favorite heading into the final, finished second with a jump of 6.98 meters. Fellow Team USA teammate Jasmine Moore earned the bronze medal with a jump of 6.98 meters.

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Team USA picked up a pair of medals in the men’s 200-meter final on Thursday as Kenneth Bednarek successfully defended his Olympic silver medal. Noah Lyles, who was the heavy favorite after his gold medal in the men’s 100-meter sprint, settled for bronze. 

Letsile Tebogo of Botswana stunned the field to win the gold medal with an official time of 19.46 seconds. 

Lyles appeared to call over for medical attention immediately after crossing the finish line, although it wasn’t immediately clear if he had sustained an injury.

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Australia's Michelle Jenneke tripped and fell during the women's 100-meter hurdles event at the Paris Olympics on Wednesday.

Jenneke appeared to have an issue with the third hurdle on the track at Stade de France. The tumble ultimately caused her to finish in last place in the heat. She did finish the event, which left her hopes of qualifying for the semifinals alive.

Jenneke had a shot at redemption in a repechage, which effectively grants competitors a second chance, on Thursday but crossed the finish line last, ending her Olympic journey.

Chantz Martin contributed to this report.

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The United States women’s volleyball team is one win away from successfully defending their title at the 2024 Paris Olympics after they defeated Brazil in three sets during Thursday’s semifinal match. 

The U.S., who won gold in Tokyo in 2021 after a win over Brazil in the finals, took the first and third set before Brazil kept their gold medal chances alive in the fourth with a 25-23 victory. 

But the Americans would seal their fate in the fifth set with a 15-11 win to close out the nearly two-hour long semifinal. 

Another gold medal in Paris would mark just the second Olympic title for the women’s volleyball team.

French runner Alice Finot may not have come away with a medal from the Paris Olympic Games, but she did come away with a fiancé.

Finot finished fourth in the women’s steeplechase race, running it in a time of 8:58.67. After the race she found her boyfriend, Spanish triathlete Bruno Martinez, and attached a “Love is in Paris” pin on his shirt and proposed with the Olympic pin.

“I told myself that if I ran under nine minutes, knowing that nine is my lucky number and that we’ve been together for nine years, then I would propose,” Finot said. “I don’t like doing things like everyone else. Since he hadn’t done it yet, I thought maybe it was up to me.”

Paris is the city of love, after all.

Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.

The most decorated woman in American Olympics history will add one more thing to her resume: a flag bearer at the closing ceremony at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Katie Ledecky received a call from fellow Team USA swimmer Bobby Finke, who delivered her the news.

“I just wanted to thank you, you’ve been a huge inspiration and a leader to us for 12 years.” Finke said. “I’ve gotten know you for these 12 years, and I really can’t think of anyone better to lead us out of these Olympic Games. So, you’re going to need a new jacket.”

Ledecky was honored to be selected.

“Thank you! Thank you, Team USA. This is a huge honor. Can’t wait for closing ceremonies and it’s been an honor representing our country here in Paris and I’m so proud to be a part of this team.”

Ledecky is taking home four medals in these Summer Games. She won bronze in the women’s 400m freestyle, silver in the women’s 4x200m freestyle, her fourth consecutive gold medal in the 800m freestyle, and set an Olympic record winning gold in the women’s 1500m freestyle.

Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.

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Sam Watson saved his best for last on Thursday in the men's speed climbing final.

The American set a world record for the second time in the Paris Games with a time of 4.74 seconds in the bronze medal match. The 18-year-old previously set the world record with a time of 4.75 seconds in an elimination heat earlier in the week, breaking his own world record of 4.79 seconds that he set in April.

After that heat, he lost in the semifinals to Wu Peng of China. Watson came in as the heavy favorite for gold. While he didn’t secure the top of the podium, he will still walk away with a world record and a bronze medal from the Paris Games.

Leonardo Veddriq of Indonesia won the gold with a time of 4.75 seconds in the final, narrowly edging out Peng, who finished with 4.77.

Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.

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The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is entering the final stretch on Thursday. Several track and field medal events are taking place, including the men’s 200-meter sprint where American track star Noah Lyles eyes his second gold medal on the purple track. 

The men’s basketball team is also gearing up for its biggest challenge in Paris yet when they take on Serbia in the men’s semifinal round. 

Here is a list of must-watch events on Thursday, August 8: 

Women’s volleyball semifinals (Brazil vs. USA) – 10 p.m. ET

Women’s water polo semifinals (Australia vs. USA) – 1:35 p.m. ET

Women’s long jump final – 2 p.m. ET

Men’s 200m final – 2:30 p.m. ET

Men’s basketball semifinal (USA vs. Serbia) – 3 p.m. ET

Women’s 400m hurdles final – 3:25 p.m. ET

Men’s 110m hurdles final – 3:45 p.m. ET

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More than two years after missing out on gold medals due to an opponent's doping use, the U.S. Olympic figure skating team finally received their hardware.

U.S. and Japan figure skaters took to a podium at Champions Park in Paris on Wednesday to receive their gold and silver medals, which they earned at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. At the time, Russia took gold in the event, much due to the help of 15-year-old Kamila Valieva, who became the first woman ever to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics.

However, Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine — a banned drug that prevents angina — at the Russian national championships in December 2021, and the results of the test were only made public the day after the team final in Beijing. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then ruled that no medals for the team figure skating event would be officially presented until Valieva's case was resolved.

The Olympians then had to wait nearly two years to know what medal they would even receive. 

This is an excerpt from a report by Jackson Thompson.