The Paris Olympics triathlon finally commenced on Wednesday, bringing relief to organizers after concerns over pollution levels in the River Seine. France’s Cassandre Beaugrand and Britain’s Alex Yee emerged victorious in the women’s and men’s events, respectively.
Beaugrand, a Parisian native, emerged from the pack in the final lap of the running stage to claim gold. Despite the threat of cancellation, she remained confident in the water quality. “It would have been shameful for our sport… it would have been a disgrace,” she stated.
In the men’s triathlon, Yee surged past New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde in a dramatic finish, improving on his silver medal from Tokyo.
Meanwhile, in table tennis, China’s world number one Wang Chuqin suffered a shock defeat to Sweden’s Truls Moregard. Wang had previously won mixed doubles gold but expressed anger after his bat was accidentally broken by a photographer.
China continued their dominance in diving, winning the women’s synchronized 10m platform ahead of North Korea and Britain. They have now secured all three gold medals in the sport so far.
In swimming, French sensation Leon Marchand aims for two more gold medals in the 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke finals. American great Katie Ledecky seeks to defend her 1500m freestyle title, while Chinese world record-holder Pan Zhanle is favored in the men’s 100m freestyle final.
In men’s basketball, Team USA, led by LeBron James and Kevin Durant, faces South Sudan in their quest for a quarterfinal berth.
Japanese gymnast Daiki Hashimoto aims to retain his all-around gold, while Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz continue their pursuit of Olympic tennis glory.
In women’s football, defending champions Canada must defeat Colombia to advance to the quarterfinals following a six-point deduction due to a spying scandal.
Despite the triathlon’s successful start, surfing events in Tahiti were delayed due to unfavorable winds.
