COVID-Hit Lyles Misses Out on a Double, US Team Breaks 100-Medal Mark

Botswana's Letsile Tebogo (2ndL) crosses the finish line ahead of US' Noah Lyles (R) to win the men's 200m final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 8, 2024. (AFP)
Botswana's Letsile Tebogo (2ndL) crosses the finish line ahead of US' Noah Lyles (R) to win the men's 200m final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 8, 2024. (AFP)
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COVID-Hit Lyles Misses Out on a Double, US Team Breaks 100-Medal Mark

Botswana's Letsile Tebogo (2ndL) crosses the finish line ahead of US' Noah Lyles (R) to win the men's 200m final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 8, 2024. (AFP)
Botswana's Letsile Tebogo (2ndL) crosses the finish line ahead of US' Noah Lyles (R) to win the men's 200m final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 8, 2024. (AFP)

Sprinter Noah Lyles revealed he had COVID-19 after missing out on another gold medal for the United States at the Paris Olympics on Thursday.

Elsewhere, French basketball star Victor Wembanyama moved closer to his dream of a first gold after helping Les Bleus beat Germany to set up a dream final against the US team after the Americans edged Serbia 95-91.

On the same Stade de France track where he won the historically close 100 meters by five thousandths of a second, Lyles was third behind gold medalist Letsile Tebogo of Botswana and US teammate Kenneth Bednarek.

Medics tended to a tired-looking Lyles and took him off in a wheelchair. Wearing a mask as he spoke with reporters, Lyles later said he had COVID.

“It definitely affected my performance,” said Lyles, adding that he tested positive early Tuesday morning but was cleared to compete. The US track federation said it and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee adhered to all Olympic and Centers for Disease Control guidelines.

Over at Bercy Arena, with former NBA stars Dirk Nowitzki and Tony Parker watching their respective countrymen, France held on to win 73-69.

Wembanyama, the NBA rookie of the year, clenched his fists at the buzzer and teammate Evan Fournier jubilantly threw the ball into the crowd.

The 20-year-old star didn't play three years ago in Tokyo, when the French lost the final to the US. They meet again Saturday, when Wembanyama hopes to give France its first Olympic gold in men's or women's basketball.

Highlights of what happened on Day 13 of the Paris Olympics:

Curry leads semifinal fightback against Serbia

LeBron James had a triple double and Steph Curry scored 36 points as the American men rallied from 17 points down.

The US faced an 11-point halftime deficit — the biggest successfully overcome by an American team since NBA players were added to the Olympic mix in 1992 — and again trailed the Serbs by 11 with just over seven minutes left.

Serbian players fell on their backs at the buzzer after coming so close.

It was a far cry from their group opener when the US rolled to a 110-84 win.

US team gets a world record, breaks the 100-medal mark

The United States now has more golds and more overall medals than any other nation.

With three days left of competition, American athletes total 30 golds for 103 medals overall.

The US went 1-2 in the women's 400 hurdles with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone breaking her own world record in a time of 50.37 seconds, and Anna Cockrell taking the silver.

Grant Holloway followed up with gold in the men's 110 hurdles in 12.99, beating countryman Daniel Roberts.

Also, Long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall won the women's long jump with Jasmine Moore taking the bronze behind Germany's Malaika Mihambo.

China’s diving double ends with tears

China claimed its sixth gold medal in diving at the Paris Games with defending champion Xie Siyi winning the 3-meter springboard.

The Chinese made it a podium 1-2 as Wang Zongyuan took the silver ahead of Mexico’s Osmar Olvera Ibarra.

Wang was in tears afterward.

He hadn’t lost a major diving competition in the event since finishing behind teammate Xie at the Tokyo Olympics. After that silver, Wang won three straight world championship titles.

“It is regrettable I lost,” Wang said through an interpreter. “I must learn to accept any failure and my response is to make a greater effort to improve myself.”

Another world record but no gold

American Sam Watson left the Games with another world record to his name but didn't get the gold medal.

The 18-year-old Watson broke sport climbing's speed world record on Thursday for the second time at the Paris Games, but that came in the fight for bronze.

Veddriq Leonardo of Indonesia won gold in 4.75 seconds in the final.

Charron lifts for another medal Maude Charron raised Canada's flag at the opening ceremony for the Paris Games and lifted up another medal in weightlifting.

Charron took the silver medal in the 59-kilogram category to add to her gold in the 64-kilogram competition at the Tokyo Games.

Rahimi stars as Morocco gets bronze

Football-mad Morocco fans finally have an Olympic medal to celebrate after routing African rival Egypt 6-0 for the bronze.

Soufiane Rahimi scored twice and the Casablanca-born striker will surely become a household name back home after netting an impressive eight goals in the tournament.

He was comfortably the leading scorer ahead of Friday's final between Spain and 1984 Olympic champion France.

Morocco won the African Cup of Nations title in 1976.

Dutch end long wait for gold in men's field hockey

Duco Telgenkamp scored the golden goal in the shootout to give the Netherlands a 2-1 victory over Germany.

It was the Netherlands’ first gold in men’s hockey at the Olympics since 2000 and third in the country’s history.

Captain Harmanpreet Singh scored both goals as India beat Spain 2-1 for a second straight bronze, after beating Germany at the Tokyo Games.

French get gold, Portugal a rare medal

Track cyclist Benjamin Thomas overcame a crash in the men's omnium race to give France its 14th gold medal of the Paris Games.

Thomas held off Iúri Leitão, whose silver medal was only Portugal's second medal so far — compared to 54 for the French.

Also, world champion Ellesse Andrews of New Zealand won the Olympic title in the women’s keirin.

Nadeem gets Pakistan's first medal with an Olympic record

Arshad Nadeem got Pakistan's first medal of the Paris Games in style by setting an Olympic record in javelin.

Nadeem's throw of 92.97 meters beat Norwegian Andreas Thorkildsen's mark of 90.57 from the 2008 Games in Beijing.



Life after Mbappé is Proving better than Expected for French Leader PSG

Kylian Mbappé of PSG celebrates after scoring the 0-2 goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, 2nd leg soccer match between Real Sociedad and Paris Saint-Germain, in San Sebastian, Spain, 05 March 2024. (EPA)
Kylian Mbappé of PSG celebrates after scoring the 0-2 goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, 2nd leg soccer match between Real Sociedad and Paris Saint-Germain, in San Sebastian, Spain, 05 March 2024. (EPA)
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Life after Mbappé is Proving better than Expected for French Leader PSG

Kylian Mbappé of PSG celebrates after scoring the 0-2 goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, 2nd leg soccer match between Real Sociedad and Paris Saint-Germain, in San Sebastian, Spain, 05 March 2024. (EPA)
Kylian Mbappé of PSG celebrates after scoring the 0-2 goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16, 2nd leg soccer match between Real Sociedad and Paris Saint-Germain, in San Sebastian, Spain, 05 March 2024. (EPA)

Kylian Mbappé's departure was expected to sidetrack Paris Saint-Germain this season.

How would a team long viewed as over-reliant on the France superstar cope without him after his move to Real Madrid?

Who could score so freely for PSG when Mbappé averaged more than 40 goals per season over the past four campaigns and more than 250 in seven years at the club? And who would bail the team out of trouble with last-gasp winners?

Things have turned out rather well, so far, and the widely anticipated post-Mbappé headache has not materialized.

Far from it.

PSG is the only team to have won its first three games in the French league and has scored an impressive 13 goals, according to The AP.

No longer being so reliant on Mbappé seems to have produced an early side effect, whereby the goals are being shared around and teamwork has improved in coach Luis Enrique's side.

Bradley Barcola has led the way with four goals, adding a finishing touch to his skilful dribbling down the left, while his France teammate Randal Kolo Muani and South Korea forward Lee Kang-in have netted twice each.

France right winger Ousmane Dembélé has chipped in with a goal and two assists for the defending champion, while new signing João Neves leads the league with three assists.

Kolo Muani and Dembélé continued their form with France, each scoring on Monday in a 2-0 win against Belgium in the Nations League.

Behind the forwards, Portugal's Vitinha and France's Warren Zaïre-Emery form a solid midfield pairing along with the 19-year-old Neves, an offseason signing from Portuguese side Benfica.

For now, it seems like Mbappé's absence is being felt more keenly off the field than on it.

On Wednesday, he rejected a mediation offer by the French soccer league’s legal commission in his dispute with PSG over wages and bonuses.

PSG officials and Mbappé’s representatives met in Paris after Mbappé asked the commission to get involved. Mbappé, who joined Madrid on a free transfer, says the club owes him 55 million euros ($60 million). PSG said it was pleased with how the commission hearing went.

While PSG's power struggle with its ex-striker continues, PSG's current crop of forwards look for more goals when the team hosts Brest on Saturday before facing Spanish side Girona on Wednesday when the Champions League starts.

Mbappé is expected to make his European debut for Madrid the previous night, at home to Stuttgart.

He never won Europe's most prestigious club prize with PSG, but most observers would argue he has a far better chance of doing so with record 15-time champion Madrid.

At some point this season, their paths may cross again on the field.