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Good Morning 👋
The gymnastics portion of the Olympics is officially over after more medals for Team USA. We’ll wave goodbye to Simone Biles and company in today’s Underdog (bottom of the newsletter). Over at Stade de France, it was quite the "field day" in Paris. Swedish pole-vaulter Mondo Duplantis made history while American Valarie Allman dominated the women's discus event. A few big games are on today... 🏅 Today's Schedule (Marquee Games)
⚽️ WSOC: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇩🇪 Germany (SFs, Noon) 🏀 MBB: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇧🇷 Brazil (QFs, 3:30 pm)
Letter Rip! |
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*Accurate Through Midnight, Aug. 5 / Click Image for Updated Medal Count |
The medal tracker gets an update for the second week of the Games. We’re only showing the top five nations in the overall medal count now that the gap has widened. Here are the rest of the top-10:
6. 🇰🇷 South Korea (26 medals), 7. 🇯🇵 Japan (26 medals), 8. 🇮🇹 Italy (25 medals), 9. 🇳🇱 Netherlands (17 medals), 10. 🇨🇦 Canada (17 medals) | Full Medal Count
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Photo: Christian Petersen / Getty Images |
🇸🇪 Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis Breaks Gravity & His Own World Record in Men’s Pole Vault (20 ft. 6 in.) His real first name is Armand, but you can call him Mondo. Sweden’s reigning pole vault gold medalist and world record-holder brought Stade de France to its feet Monday night. And if you didn’t catch Mondo Duplantis's magical moment, you missed history. That photo is epic, though.
Duplantis has already set eight world records by age 24, and he keeps attempting to raise his own bar. Fans hoped he’d try again on Monday, and he did. After securing the gold medal (6.10M) by upstaging American Sam Kendricks (Silver: 5.95M), Mondo had one attempt left for the world record — his own world record — of 6.25M. That’s 20 feet, 6 inches… More than two basketball hoops.
A packed house at Stade de France was on its feet for history. Mondo was the last man competing in the final event of the day, but the patrons were still there. His first two attempts clipped the bar as he tended to a bloodied hand. On the third and final run: Clear. The stadium erupted as Duplantis let out a scream and sprinted over to hug his family and friends.
The NBC broadcast crew made comparisons to Mondo’s rise and dominance in the sport, likening him to the Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps of pole vaulting. He’s just 24 years old with (likely) many more records to come. Spectacular athletes are providing memorable moments all over these Games, but Mondo Duplantis just raised the bar. Watch: 🇸🇪 Mondo Duplantis Breaks His Own World Record in Men’s Pole Vault |
Allman Twirls Another Gold 🇺🇸 |
Photo: Michael Steele / Getty Images |
🇺🇸 USA's Valarie Allman Defends Women's Discus Title With Back-to-Back Gold Medals Women's Discus 🇺🇸 Valarie Allman Earns Back-to-Back Golds
If you didn’t know Valarie Allman, you should now. The USA’s women’s discus superstar defended her gold medal from 2021 with another near-perfect set of throws on Monday. Allman initially set the spot at 68.78 meters, a mark that couldn’t be beaten by China (Silver: 67.51m) or Croatia (Bronze: 67.51m). With gold already in hand, Allman hurled a 69.50-meter walk-off in her final attempt to retain the crown. 👟 Other Track & Field Highlights |
Other Olympics Highlights |
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🏟️ Paris Proves Fans Are Essential
After empty stands and silence in Tokyo in 2021, the crowds are creating an energizing environment that is powering the athletes at these Summer Games. (Sports Illustrated)
🏅 The High School of Olympians
In the middle of an unpretentious, working-class neighborhood in Long Beach, California, is a public high school with a remarkable claim to fame — Olympic athletes. (Yahoo! Sports)
🏀 Olympic Basketball MVP Ladder
The men’s basketball tournament in Paris is about to tip off the quarterfinals, but which stars have shone the brightest? Here are 10 MVP candidates from the final eight teams. (NBC Sports) |
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The Olympic Must-Watch List |
🏅 Olympics (Marquee Games)
⚽️ WSOC: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇩🇪 Germany (SFs, Noon) 🏀 MBB: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇧🇷 Brazil (QFs, 3:30 pm)
SFs = Semifinals / QFs = Quarterfinals Other Events 🏐 WVB: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇵🇱 Poland (QFs, 11:00 am) 🛹 SKATE: Women’s Park (Finals, 11:30 am)
🏀 MBB: 🇫🇷 France vs. 🇨🇦 Canada (QFs, Noon)
⚽️ WSOC: 🇧🇷 Brazil vs. 🇪🇸 Spain (SFs, 3:00 pm) 🏐 WBV: 🇺🇸 USA vs. 🇨🇭 Switzerland (QFs, 4:00 pm) WVB = Women’s Volleyball / WBV = Women’s Beach Volleyball
👟 Track & Field Finals Men’s 1500M (1:00 pm) Women’s 200M (1:35 pm) Women’s Hammer Throw (1:50 pm) Men’s Long Jump (2:10 pm)
Other Sports in Action: Artistic Swimming, Boxing, Canoeing, Cycling, Diving, Equestrian, Field Hockey, Handball, Sailing, Skateboarding, Sport Climbing, Table Tennis, Water Polo, Wrestling
*All Times ET / Coverage on NBC & Peacock |
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Photo: Eurasia Sport Images / Getty Images |
After a Mental Health Crisis Derailed America’s Gym Hero, Simone Biles Gave the World Courage, Kindness & Humanity
I’ll never forget the moment I crossed paths with Simone Biles, however brief. The 4-foot-8 gymnast stood at eye-level to my chest. When it comes to undersized athletes, Biles takes the gold. Despite her size, she exuded the aura of a giant. Biles is all smiles, too. She’s equal parts authentic kindness and world-famous superstar inexplicably coexisting together. Athletes that famous aren’t always so kind. And as you can probably assume, the crown Biles carries is heavier than most.
Turbulent Twisties
Most sports fans know the Biles saga by now. Just before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, she pulled out of the Games with a mental health issue that puzzled fans. We now know the term commonly referred to as “the twisties.” Spinning and twisting in mid-air isn’t exactly safe if your mind isn’t right. Her decision to drop out of the Olympics split the sports world into two camps. Many backed Biles and supported her decision to step away. Others didn’t understand. I leaned toward the latter at the time.
Amid a global pandemic and a year-long wait for (what should have been) the 2020 Olympics, I was still naive. Athletes get injured. They don’t quit. Her body was healthy. Why wasn’t her mind? That’s something fans (and sportswriters) often forget. These athletes aren’t just entertainers. They’re human.
Biles was met with a lot of hatred for her decision back in 2021 as casual sports fans failed to comprehend the situation. After the withdrawal, she vanished from the spotlight. But over the past three years, Biles has been building for this week, balancing the anxiety of the past with newfound appreciation for the journey. Earlier this year, she confirmed her commitment to return to the Olympics and compete for Team USA at age 27. And thus, the redemption tour was a go. She was already gymnastics’ biggest star. Somehow, in 2024, that 4-foot-8 legend grew even bigger.
Biles at the 2024 Olympics
The world watched as Team USA struck gold in the women’s team event to kickstart the gymnastics rounds last week. Biles was the anchor to bring home the gold. Throughout the weekend, she was flip-for-flip the best gymnast in the building. She racked up two more gold medals in all-around and vault before finishing with the silver by a narrow margin in yesterday’s floor exercise. Four medals. Three golds. One silver.
Silver? Really, Simone?
Even the GOAT is human.
And she’s dang good at being human…
After Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade took the gold in the floor routine, Biles and teammate Jordan Chiles celebrated her on the podium in recognition of the journey she’d also been on. Andrade had suffered three torn ACLs en route to her own Olympic redemption tour. Biles knew that. “It was just the right thing to do,” Biles said. “She’s queen.” Accolades are great. Humanity is greater. Simone Biles helped remind us of that truth. If this was her last Olympics, she flipped the script... and stuck the landing.
The GOAT: With four medals in the 2024 Olympics, Biles leaves Paris with 11 career medals as the most decorated U.S. Olympic gymnast ever. |
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