Connect with us

Olympics

It’s 9th day of Paris 2024; see what will happen

blank

Published

on

blank

The curtain comes down on “Marchand mania” with the final swimming events at La Defense Arena on Sunday, just as the action at the Stade de France athletics track reaches fever pitch with the men’s 100 metres final.

Novak Djokovic takes on Carlos Alcaraz at Roland Garros in a blockbuster men’s singles tennis final, while Xander Schauffele will be hunting for back-to-back gold medals at the Le Golf National course.

Four gold medals are on offer in the pool, three Olympic titles will be decided in artistic gymnastics, while champions will also be crowned in shooting, archery, badminton, fencing and golf.

LYLES TAKES TO FIELD IN ATHLETICS

Stade de France is the place to be for the fans as it stages the men’s 100 metres semi-final and medal race where American Noah Lyles is chasing a rare Olympic sprint double.

Lyles has Jamaican Kishane Thompson hoping to spoil the party, along with Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala, the second-fastest man this year.

Advertisement

Ukrainian Yaroslava Mahuchikh fights to add Olympic high jump gold to her World Championship title in the women’s event, after breaking the world record – a mark that had stood since 1987 – earlier this month with 2.10 metres.

SWIMMING COMPETITION ENDS

The swimming competition in Paris ends with four medal events after nine days of thrills, when the fastest woman in the pool will be crowned in the 50m freestyle final. World record holder Sarah Sjoestroem of Sweden is the favourite.

After winning gold in the 800m freestyle, Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen will look to complete the distance double having topped the 1,500m freestyle heats.

The night ends with men’s and women’s 4x100m medley relay finals, with the defending champion United States team under pressure from a Leon Marchand-inspired France.

MOUTH-WATERING CLASH IN TENNIS

The final day of the tennis competition at Roland Garros offers a mouth-watering men’s singles final as Serbia’s Djokovic tries to add a first Olympic gold medal to his 24 Grand Slam titles.

Advertisement

He will be up against Spain’s Alcaraz who will start favourite after beating Djokovic to win Wimbledon.

ARTISTIC GYMNASTS ON BARS AND VAULT

The gold medal in the women’s uneven bars will be awarded on a night when Simone Biles will be watching, not competing. French-born Algerian Kaylia Nemour will be vying for gold.

The men’s rings final and vault also take place.

MEN’S DOUBLES GOLD ON THE LINE IN BADMINTON

China take on Taiwan in what promises to be an electric encounter for gold in the men’s doubles final, while reigning men’s singles champion Viktor Axelsen faces relative newcomer Lakshya Sen from India.

WOMEN’S SKEET SHOOTING GOLD FINAL

Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Wei Meng of China will have to raise her level to make the final of the women’s skeet event, while Britain’s Amber Rutter looks safe behind Germany’s table-topper Nele Wissmer after three rounds of qualification.

Advertisement

Rutter has a point to prove, having missed out on the Tokyo Games after testing positive for COVID two days before the opening ceremony.

BASKETBALL WOMEN SEAL KNOCKOUT SPOTS

The final women’s group games will be played at Pierre Mauroy stadium in Lille, with eight of the 12 teams going through to the quarter-finals.

Canada take on Nigeria and Australia face already-qualified France, while the United States meet Germany, with both teams having also made it through to the knockout stages

MEN ON THE MARK AT ARCHERY

The men’s individual medals are awarded in archery at Invalides. Turkey’s Mete Gazoz will seek to defend his gold from Tokyo against competitors from South Korea, who have won every archery gold medal in Paris so far.

Advertisement

FOX ON THE HUNT AT CANOEING

Australia’s Jessica Fox resumes her quest for a clean sweep of the canoeing gold medals as she takes part in the kayak cross competition at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

VERDICT OUT FOR 3X3 BASKETBALL MEN’S POOL

The men’s pool stage delivers its final verdict after defending champions Latvia locked up a semi-final spot.

The other top team from the pool go straight to the semi-finals, the next four teams play off for the other two spots in the last four and the last two are eliminated.

GOLD ON OFFER AT GOLF

The men’s golf competition concludes at Le Golf National near Paris, with the final round on Sunday.

American Schauffele is on track to repeat his Tokyo triumph, taking the joint lead with Spain’s Jon Rahm going into the final round, with Britain’s Tommy Fleetwood one shot back in third.

Advertisement

RARE CONTEST ON OFFER AT TABLE TENNIS

China’s Fan Zhendong faces Swede Truls Moregard in the first table tennis men’s singles final since 2004 that is not between two Chinese players.

Home favourite Felix Lebrun will fight it out for bronze with Brazil’s Hugo Calderano.

FAIR WINDS AT THE SAILING

Kiteboarding makes its debut on a day filled with racing in the six remaining events in Olympic sailing.

With more wind than during the first phase of the Games, the races are faster and more physically demanding, but without the frustrations of long delays for sailors.

-Reuters

Advertisement

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Olympics

Olympic rings removed from Eiffel Tower

blank

Published

on

blank
The Eiffel Tower and the Olympic Rings

The Olympic rings installed on the Eiffel Tower since June to celebrate the upcoming Olympic Games were removed from the Parisian monument early on Friday morning, as confirmed by an AFP photographer. But the Paris City Hall intends to replace them with a more permanent structure until 2028.

The five-coloured rings, measuring 29 metres in length and 15 metres in height, were placed between the first and second levels of the iconic iron structure on 7 June. 

According to Inside the Games publication, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo  wants the Olympic symbol to continue decorating the monument until the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

But the descendants of the tower’s creator, Gustave Eiffel are opposing the move. They are insisting that the Olympic rings are aesthetically in conflict with the concept and design of the Tower.

The 30-tonne rings initially installed on the Eiffel Tower were also not designed to withstand winter weather conditions.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Olympics

Despite Egypt winning 3 medals at Paris Olympics, President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul

blank

Published

on

blank
Ahmed El-Gendy won Egypt's only gold at the Paris Olympics

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered  a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that  participatedat the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.

The mandate includes a thorough expenditure check and a performance review to better highlight areas of improvement and fund allocation in future Games.

Additionally, the president plans to take necessary measures against federations —such as limiting funds— that had negative results in the Paris Games.

Egypt’s participation in sports where it lacks a competitive advantage will also be limited, as the president aims to direct resources to promising athletes to ensure optimal results. The president also aims to reduce administrative and technical staff within Olympic delegations and task relevant ministries with preparing future Olympic athletes.

Al-Sisi’s Olympic overhaul is to be presented to the cabinet for approval and urged the government to prioritise amending the sports law for the House of Representatives for review. 

Advertisement

Egypt took home a total of three medals in the Summer Games. Ahmed El-Gendy triumphed in modern pentathlon, Sara Samir claimed the silver in weightlifting, and 21-year-old fencer Mohamed El-Sayed earned the bronze.

-Insidethegames

Continue Reading

Olympics

Paris 2024 Games break record ticket sales

blank

Published

on

blank
Beach Volleyball - Men's Gold Medal Match - Sweden vs Germany (Ahman/Hellvig vs Ehlers/Wickler) - Eiffel Tower Stadium, Paris, France - August 10, 2024. REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo

Paris 2024 sold a record 12 million tickets for the Olympics and Paralympics, beating the Games record previously set by London 2012, organisers said on Sunday.

Some 9.5 million tickets were sold for the Olympics and 2.5 million for the Paralympics, which end on Sunday.

In 2012, London organisers set the record for the Paralympics with 2.7 million tickets sold but only 8.2 million were sold for the Olympics.

-Reuters

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Most Viewed