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US Wins Gold in Men's Basketball and Women's Soccer

Gold medallists USA's #04 Stephen Curry (L), USA's #06 LeBron James and teammates celebrate on the podium after the men's Gold Medal basketball match between France and USA during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris on August 10, 2024. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP)
Gold medallists USA's #04 Stephen Curry (L), USA's #06 LeBron James and teammates celebrate on the podium after the men's Gold Medal basketball match between France and USA during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris on August 10, 2024. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP)
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US Wins Gold in Men's Basketball and Women's Soccer

Gold medallists USA's #04 Stephen Curry (L), USA's #06 LeBron James and teammates celebrate on the podium after the men's Gold Medal basketball match between France and USA during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris on August 10, 2024. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP)
Gold medallists USA's #04 Stephen Curry (L), USA's #06 LeBron James and teammates celebrate on the podium after the men's Gold Medal basketball match between France and USA during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Bercy Arena in Paris on August 10, 2024. (Photo by Aris MESSINIS / AFP)

The US collected gold in men’s basketball and women’s soccer and earned three more golds in a huge night at the track Saturday at the Paris Olympics.

Stephen Curry scored 24 points to lead Team USA over France 98-87 at Bercy Arena to win its fifth straight gold medal and 17th overall, The Associated Press reported. France got 26 points from star Victor Wembanyama, but it wasn’t enough to earn the host nation its first gold medal in the sport.

The US needed a rally to beat Serbia 95-91 in a compelling semifinal. In the final, Curry hit four 3-pointers in the last three minutes. When he made the last one, which pushed the lead to 96-87 with 35 seconds left, he put his hands to the side of his face in a “go to sleep” gesture.

“I think we might be the only team in the world whose fans are ashamed of them if they get a silver medal,” US coach Steve Kerr said. “That’s the pressure that we face. But our players, and you saw Steph, they love the pressure. They appreciate this atmosphere and they were fantastic.”

Kevin Durant, who became the first four-time men’s gold medalist in Olympic basketball history, added 15 points and LeBron James had 14. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, James pumped his fist before embracing Durant.

It’s the fourth Olympic silver for France, which was runner-up to the Americans in 1948, 2000 and 2020. Wembanyama, this year's NBA Rookie of the Year, cried as the US celebrated. Later, Durant gave him a hug and the two talked for a couple of minutes.

Earlier Saturday, the US women’s soccer team beat Brazil 1-0 on a second-half goal by Mallory Swanson to win its fifth Olympic gold medal and first since 2012 in London.

After Swanson put the Americans on top, goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher secured the win with a one-handed save on Adriana’s header in stoppage time at Parc des Princes.

“We’ve grown so much,” said Swanson, who was making her 100th national team appearance. “And that’s really cool to me seeing that. We’ve grown on and off the field. And you keep probably hearing it — we’re playing with joy. We’re having so much fun and I’m just so happy.”

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It Was Stressful, but We Did It, Paris 2024 Olympics Organizers Say

A worker takes down Olympic signage from the pontoon used for swim events along the Seine River ahead of tomorrow's closing ceremony at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP)
A worker takes down Olympic signage from the pontoon used for swim events along the Seine River ahead of tomorrow's closing ceremony at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP)
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It Was Stressful, but We Did It, Paris 2024 Olympics Organizers Say

A worker takes down Olympic signage from the pontoon used for swim events along the Seine River ahead of tomorrow's closing ceremony at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP)
A worker takes down Olympic signage from the pontoon used for swim events along the Seine River ahead of tomorrow's closing ceremony at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP)

What started with a major security scare and torrential rain that threatened the smooth running of the elaborate opening ceremony and swimming events being held in the Seine, ended with the river playing its expected central part in the Olympics.

Paris 2024 organizing committee president Tony Estanguet said it had been stressful and adjustments had had to be made, but the triple Olympic champion was beaming with pride as he reflected on Saturday on a successful Games.

"The ambition we had was worth fighting for, we made strong choices, bold choices that are not always the easiest ones," Estanguet told a press conference a day before the Games end.

The Games, with iconic Parisian landmarks integrated in many urban competition venues, have scored strong ratings in key markets, including in the United States for rights holder NBCUniversal, the biggest single source of revenues for the International Olympic Committee.

Organizers had decided marathon swimming and the swimming legs of the triathlon would take place on the Seine, just like the globally acclaimed opening ceremony - the first time one had been held outside a stadium.

And while training sessions and were delayed and the men's triathlon was pushed back due to concerns over the water quality after heavy rain, the events that had been due to happen in the river did go ahead.

"Swimming in the river Seine, we have faced challenges but we did it, we delivered this ambition, that's why it's a fantastic success so far," Estanguet said.

"We've had so much rain (on opening ceremony day), it was not the plan. We had anticipated some rain but we've had to adjust in the final hours and change a lot of things so that this ceremony could happen.

"Yes, I was stressed because I did not know to what extent the artists would manage to adapt to these crazy condition. It was quite an achievement from them."

GLOBAL RATINGS

The weather complicated the ambition to swim in the Seine.

"We had no guarantees on storms, some of them were not anticipated and happened, others were anticipated and did not happen," Estanguet said.

"We were not spared," Paris 2024 CEO Etienne Thobois said. "We had contingency plans and every time we were ready. There were moments of stress but everyone reacted with professionalism. The preparation work was perfect."

Security was another major challenge. Saboteurs struck France's TGV high-speed train network in a series of pre-dawn attacks across the country, causing travel chaos on the morning of the opening ceremony.

"Let's remember those attacks, we responded swiftly, the accreditation system was impacted (by a cyber attack) but we solved the problem within four hours," Thobois said.

The Games were also rated as a success by the IOC, with the Paris Games coordination commission chief Pierre-Olivier Beckers-Vieujant praising organizers for the venues, full stadiums and satisfying global ratings.

"If there had been an audacious, daring script for these Games it would have read like that. These Games have set a high benchmark," Beckers-Vieujant told the IOC session on Saturday.

"The Games have truly been embraced by Parisians ... Indeed by the whole world. More than half of the worldwide population will have followed in some form the Olympic Games over the past two weeks."