Canada’s 17-year-old swimming prodigy, Summer McIntosh, claimed her first Olympic gold medal on Monday. In a thrilling tennis showdown, Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal in their latest legendary encounter.
On the third day in Paris, fans witnessed gold medals awarded across 11 sports as radiant blue skies replaced the damp memories of the opening ceremony.
In a dazzling display at the pool, McIntosh delivered an exceptional performance in the 400m individual medley, leaving American swimmers Katie Grimes and Emma Weyant far behind.
“It was an amazing feeling. It’s always just about having fun, as well as pushing my body to its limits,” said world record-holder McIntosh, whose winning time was the fourth-fastest ever.
Australian star Ariarne Titmus narrowly missed collecting her second gold of the Games, as teammate Mollie O’Callaghan set an Olympic record to win the 200m freestyle gold.
Elsewhere in swimming, a nail-biting men’s 200m freestyle saw Romania’s David Popovici edge out Britain’s Matthew Richards by a fingertip, winning by just 0.02 seconds.
20 years later
With the mercury touching 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit), the hottest ticket in town was at Roland Garros for the clash of tennis titans Djokovic and Nadal.
King of clay Nadal has always enjoyed an edge over his rival in Paris, but at age 38 and with injuries slowing him down, he had warned he would struggle to be competitive against Djokovic.
That proved painfully prescient in the first set as the ruthless Serb dispatched his opponent 6-1.
But 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal rolled back the years in the second set, roared on by a packed crowd, fighting back from 4-0 down to 4-4 with two breaks of serve.
Djokovic found an extra gear at the end to claim a 6-1, 6-4 victory. The pair embraced at the net, with the popular Nadal waving to the Roland Garros faithful.
Nadal, now ranked 161 in the world, said he would decide on his future after the Paris Games “based on my feelings,” complaining he did not “have the legs of 20 years ago.”
“I never thought back in 2006 that we’d still be playing each other almost 20 years later,” said Djokovic, who admitted he was “very relieved” to have gotten through.
So proud
In diving, Britain’s Tom Daley took an emotional silver medal with partner Noah Williams in the men’s synchronized 10m platform behind China’s Lian Junjie and Yang Hao.
Williams choked back tears as he recalled his former coach, Dave Jenkins, who died in 2021 after the last Olympics in Tokyo.
Daley, whose father Rob died of cancer in 2011, said: “I’ve never seen Noah cry in my whole life. I know how much today means to him.
“It’s very sad Dave is not here, but I know Dave and my dad would both be so proud to see us here today.”
China won the first diving gold in Paris with a victory ahead of the United States and Britain in the women’s synchronized 3m springboard.
Late magic
In another seesaw contest, Japan edged out China in the gymnastics men’s team final.
Daiki Hashimoto conjured up some late magic to help Japan secure gold as arch-rival China crumbled with the title within its grasp.
In mountain biking, Britain’s Tom Pidcock staged an extraordinary comeback from a puncture to win his second straight gold, holding off French home favorite Victor Koretzky in a thrilling sprint finish.
Yuto Horigome retained his men’s skateboarding street title after the event was postponed on Saturday due to rain.
War-torn Ukraine secured its first medal of the Games, with fencing great Olga Kharlan winning bronze in the women’s individual saber.
Olympic organizers will be crossing their fingers for the men’s triathlon on Tuesday after canceling a second day of training in the Seine due to pollution in the river.
